Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided Walkthrough

This guide shows how to create a character and gives you the basics for surviving and prospering in the galaxy. Once you have your feet under you, use the guide to traveling the galaxy so you can put your skills to good use.

Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided is a huge game, bigger than most other massively-multiplayer games. The cities are huge, the number of character options is overwhelming, and there is enough open land to ensure that you will probably never see every corner of every planet. Your play options are also endless. Players can create their own clothing, weapons, food, and even entire walled cities. You can become a sniper, a chef, a martial artist, or just wander the galaxy, looking into each nook and cranny of every planet that you can find. What will you do? How will you decide?

This GameSpot Game Guide to Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided will show you all of your options and will tell you how to create a character that is powerful, yet well-rounded and fun to play. We will then reveal the basics for surviving and prospering in the galaxy, as well as the tricks of the trade that the experts use to get ahead. Once you have your feet under you, we will provide you with a guide to traveling the galaxy so you can put your skills to good use.

Character Generation

Character generation is the process by which you decide upon and create a character to be your alter ego in Star Wars Galaxies. There are several steps involved in character generation, and while the process is relatively simple, you can fine-tune almost every detail of your character if you want to go deeper.

To begin with, you will be asked to choose your race (at which point you can customize your appearance), followed by your starting profession. These two things will determine your starting attributes and the equipment you begin the game with. You will then be given the option of traveling immediately to your starting planet, or going through the single-player tutorial section.

If this is your first time playing Star Wars Galaxies, we highly recommend that you run through the tutorial. The interface is excellent, but works differently than most other games, and the tutorial does an excellent job of preventing confusion, and helps you to catch cool features which you might otherwise have missed.

Attributes

Attributes (sometimes called 'stats,' or 'statistics') are a series of numbers that describe the relative strengths and weaknesses of a character in Star Wars Galaxies, with higher numbers representing higher levels of the relevant attribute. A weak character might have a strength rating of only 300, while a very strong character might have a rating of 600, though what is considered high or low can vary from attribute to attribute.

Your beginning attributes are set, first of all, by to the race you choose for your character and secondly by your starting profession. As an example, a human brawler would receive a +300 bonus to their starting strength (+100 for being human, +200 for being a brawler), whereas a Wookiee marksman would have a bonus of +500 to strength (+350 for being a Wookiee and +150 for being a marksman).

Technically there are nine attributes in Star Wars Galaxies, but in practice, there are only three that are used directly, each with two support attributes: one attribute that determines how much the main attribute is drained each time it is used, and one attribute that determines how fast the main attribute regenerates.

As an example, health is the primary attribute that represents your overall physical well-being. If you get injured or perform a very strenuous task, your health goes down a bit. The drain rate attribute for health is strength, and constitution is the recharge attribute. When you get injured, you lose a bit of health, but it is your strength that determines just how much health you lose from that injury; the stronger you are, the less health you lose. After you are injured, it is your constitution attribute that determines how quickly you recover your lost health; the higher your constitution, the faster your health recovers. The stats, with their support attributes, are listed below.

Health

Primary attribute

Strength

health drain rate

Constitution

health recharge rate

Action

Primary attribute

Quickness

action drain rate

Stamina

action recharge rate

Mind

Primary attribute

Focus

mind drain rate

Willpower

mind recharge rate

"Although there are nine attributes, you will normally only deal directly with three."

As you can see, even though there are nine attributes, only three directly affect your character.

Health is your physical health, and can be reduced by things like injury, strenuous activity, or by making special attacks.

Action is your physical energy, your ability to do lots of things quickly and accurately. It is drained by making some special attacks, by some strenuous activity, and by getting hit with some special attacks.

Mind is your mental ability, thought process, and so forth. It is used up by performing thinking tasks, special attacks requiring concentration, and by getting hit with some special attacks.

Races

Bothans

Hailing from the planet Bothawui, the Bothans are a short, mammalian race famed for their Spynet, a network of spies rivaling any other information-gathering agency in the galaxy. Bothawui is organized along clan lines with a complex democratic political structure. Between the intricate political maneuverings that come so easily to them and their reputation as crafty spies, Bothans are often looked at with distrust, and are always assumed to have a hidden agenda. While this often proves true, Bothans are also extremely loyal to their friends.

Famous Bothans: Bothans are the only race in Star Wars Galaxies that has not had an appearance in the films, other than a couple of brief mentions in Return of the Jedi ("The data brought to us by the Bothan spies pinpoints the exact location of the Emperor's new battle station.").

Physical Appearance

Bothans are the shortest race in Star Wars Galaxies, averaging only 1.4 meters (~4' 7") tall, with the males being a little taller than the females. They are covered in short fur of varying tone, and many have longer fur ("hair") atop their heads which they wear in a variety of styles.

Given their general speed and agility, Bothans are natural scouts. This is enhanced by their diminutive size and natural ability to hide.

Because of their generally lower strength and health, they don't make good close combatants--they tend to die too easily! On the other hand, their agility works in their favor for marksman professions, which allows them to fight from a relatively safe distance while the Wookiees soak up all the hurt on the front lines.

"Human and Bothan--the jack of all trades and the spy."

Humans

Humans are the most prolific race in the galaxy, being found almost everywhere, yet not claiming any one world as their ancestral home. Their strength lies not in specifics, but in generalities. They are extremely adaptable, and can succeed in almost any task, though they are not especially adept at anything in particular.

Humans are bipedal mammals, averaging approximately 1.75 meters (~5'8") in height, with males somewhat taller than females. They are almost hairless, with the only visible hair growing long atop their heads, or, in the case of males, in the lower areas of their faces as well. Humans' skin can be of a number of tones, ranging from a pale pink to a dark brown.

Humans' abilities are very, very general. There is no profession that they are amazingly competent at, but likewise, there is no profession that they are unsuitable for. They can excel at anything.

Their ability to adapt to situations and conditions does give them a slight edge when crafting, allowing them to improve upon well-known existing designs.

Humans are also so well known, and have interacted with so many races throughout the galaxy that they have come to be recognized as natural candidates for leadership positions.

Mon Calamari

The Mon Calamari, or "Mon Cal" as they are occasionally called, are a bipedal race of amphibians from the planet from which they take their name--Mon Calamari. There they live near the water, along the shorelines or in floating cities, sharing their world with the underwater-dwelling Quarren. The Mon Cal are a peaceful, intelligent race, known for their architecture and quality craftsmanship, as well as for their scholarly curiosity into anything and everything.

The Mon Calamari have had a long history of subjugation at the hands of the Empire, often as unwilling servants. Because of this, they can be often be found using their amazing minds in vital strategic roles within the Rebel Alliance

Famous Mon Calamari: Admiral Ackbar

Physical Appearance

Sometimes compared to a fish, sometimes to a squid, the appearance of the Mon Calamari shows their aquatic origins quite plainly. They have huge, bulbous eyes and bulging heads, with the females' heads being a bit smaller and more streamlined than the males'. Their skin tones are wondrously varied, and they often have bright, patterned markings. They stand an average of 1.65 meters (~5' 5") in height.

Make no mistake, Mon Cal are thinkers. While they are capable of surviving a combat situation, their lack of strength, health, and speed makes them a poor choice for fighter classes. Similarly, while they have good stamina, they lack the overall agility needed for a good entertainer.

On the other hand, Mon Cal can make fantastic artisans and medics. Their mental strengths allow them to concentrate on crafting tasks in a way that no other race can, doing more before growing tired.

"Mon Calamari and Rodian. One a thinker, the other an ancestral hunter."

Rodians

Rodians are a race that value the idea of the hunt and glorify death. Their peculiar psychological makeup caused them to bring themselves to the point of extinction with constant warfare, slowly destroying their planet, Rodia, with pollution brought about by the industry needed to support their war efforts. Luckily, they realized their predicament before it was too late, and focused their efforts on new forms of entertainment, although those forms were almost as bloody as the warfare!

Famous Rodians: Greedo

Physical Appearance

Rodians are a bipedal, hairless race with long snouts, large eyes, and long swiveling 'sensors.' While many female Rodians have hair, males have crests or frills of odd protuberances covering their heads. The majority of Rodians are shades of green, but other colors, such as blue or white, are not unknown. They are of relatively small stature, averaging only 1.5 meters (~4'11") in height.

Rodians are small, quick beings of unimpressive strength and mediocre intelligence. This makes them effective as Marksmen, especially if specialized in those weapons that allow them to stay at a distance from their enemies.

While they make decent scouts, their real potential lies in those who study both scouting and marksmanship, allowing them to become some of the galaxy's best Bounty Hunters.

Rodians' unimpressive mental abilities make them sub-par craftsmen, although hundreds of years of warfare have allowed Rodians to become extremely competent weaponsmiths.

Despite their violent tendencies, the Rodians' quick, agile bodies allow them to become extremely effective entertainers.

Trandoshans

Trandoshans are a tall, reptilian warrior race from a planet they call Dosha. They are feared throughout the galaxy for their tendency toward violence, and are often disliked for their frequently unfriendly dispositions. While there are exceptions to the rule, most Trandoshans live up to their cold-blooded nature, hunting what they consider to be lesser races for bounties or for slaves. They are longtime enemies of the Wookiees, and have enslaved many members of that race.

Famous Trandoshans: Bossk

Physical Appearance

Trandoshans are tall, almost as tall as Wookiees, averaging two meters (~6'6") tall. They have ridged skulls, large eyes, and thick, scaly skin in shades of yellow, green, and red. Their hands have three clawed fingers, and their legs are thick and muscled.

Trandoshans are natural warriors, and their ability to use their claws as weapons makes them effective Brawlers, piling fast, brutal attacks on their enemies, while their high health and natural healing abilities keep them alive.

Their health allows them to function well in any other combat role, although their relatively low speed and agility put them at a disadvantage when using ranged weapons.

Their ancestry as hunters makes them decent scouts, and, later on, effective rangers or bounty hunters.

"Trandoshan and Twi'lek--one a warrior, one a survivor."

Twi'leks

The Twi'lek are a humanoid race from the planet of Ryloth, where they dwell in subterranean cities. Ryloth is a harsh world, with only a narrow band of livable land between a temperate and a frozen zone. These conditions have caused the Twi'lek to evolve as a healthy, tough race. They heal quickly and move fast, have the ability to eat almost anything, and can survive in extraordinary circumstances.

Famous Twi'leks: Bibfort'una, Oola

Physical Appearance

Twi'leks are hairless humanoids of averaging 1.7 meters (~5'6") in height. They have narrow eyes, pointed teeth, and their skin can come in almost any color of the spectrum. Their most distinguishing characteristic is their lekku, or head-tails. These are long, articulate protuberances from a Twi'lek's head, normally two in number, that serve a number of purposes not fully understood by outsiders. It is known that the Twi'leks can use their lekku for a type of silent gesture communication. The Twi'lek call the individual protuberances tchin and tchun.

Due to their astounding agility and ability to use their lekku, Twi'leks make fantastic dancers, and have also developed an affinity for music to accompany their mesmerizing, relaxing dances. Twi'leks have become known as some of the galaxy's best entertainers.

Their high action and quickness makes them very effective marksmen, and their high constitution allows them to survive longer than many races on the front lines of a battle.

Twi'leks don't really have the physical strength necessary for brawling, nor do they have the mental faculties necessary to excel in craftsmanship.

Wookiees

Wookiees are a very misunderstood species. Most who see their hulking, furry, unclothed forms and hear their bestial language assume that Wookiees are primitive animals, but nothing could be further from the truth. They are strong and powerful, with a culture closely connected to nature, but they are also an intelligent and thoughtful race. Instead of wrapping their lives and culture around technology the way most races do, they have learned to integrate technology into their lives without leaving behind the natural connections that they love.

Famous Wookiees: Chewbacca

Physical Appearance

Wookiees are among the most distinctive of races. Standing an average of 2.1 meters (~6'10") tall, they tower over the galaxy's other inhabitants. Wookiees are covered from head to foot with thick, long hair in shades of brown, black, and white, often combined into patterns. Because of the long fur covering their bodies, Wookiees generally choose to go without extensive clothing, save for a few ornamental or practical items.

Wookiees' size, strength, and physical health make them superb warriors up close, and their high action scores make them excellent marksmen. They are, hands down, some of the potentially best warriors of all types in the game.

They are also smart enough to make excellent craftsmen, medics, whatever you like. While they may not seem like the best choices for scouts, towering over the landscape, their close connection to nature gives them skill advantages there, too.

To that point, Wookiees can excel in any profession, more so than any other race, with fantastic attributes and skills. There is a downside, though. First off, Wookiees can't speak Basic, the language of all of the other races--they simply don't have the mouth structures necessary. Wookiees can only speak Shyriiwook, the Wookiee language. They can learn to understand other races' languages, but in order for a Wookiee to be understood, his listeners have to learn Shyriiwook.

Another issue is their size and build. Because Wookiees are so large, most clothing and armor available in the game cannot be made to fit them.

All in all, Wookiees are a very powerful race, but are not without their drawbacks. They can be a true challenge to play, but they can also be a true pleasure.

"Wookiee and Zabrak. A naturalistic warrior and a determined expansionist."

Zabrak

Zabraks are a humanoid race that is known for its steadfast dedication to whatever idea they have chosen to pursue. Some would call them single minded, others would call them stubborn. Their home world of Iridonia was an inhospitable one, giving them their racial determination, and leading them, by necessity, to colonize nearby planets early in their history.

Famous Zabraks: Darth Maul, Eeth Koth

Physical Appearance

Zabraks look much like humans, standing an average of 1.75 meters (~5'8") tall. Most are hairless, and their heads are covered with a variety of small, vestigal horns. All Zabraks have these horns, though the size, shape, and pattern varies between the various Zabrak subspecies. Zabraks are also known for covering themselves with complex facial tattoos to express their individuality.

Zabraks have both high health and high action scores, allowing them to manage well as both brawlers and marksmen, but they have low supporting attributes, meaning that they take much longer to recover after a tough fight than their fellows. Their determination, though, gives them some resistance to attacks that would weaken or disable other fighters, making up for their weak secondary attributes.

Zabraks have such a high willpower that their mental energies can be replenished very quickly, making them excellent for tasks requiring brief periods of intense mind use followed by periods of rest--such as medics.

They are less suited to craftsman professions that require longer, sustained periods of mental drain, but their even spread of statistical bonuses mean that they can, with work, succeed in any profession.

Skills and Abilities

Professions, Disciplines, and Tiers

The skills and abilities that you are able to learn are based entirely on your chosen profession or professions. Each profession, both basic and advanced, has sixteen regular skills, and two special skills (novice and master). Most of these skills are actually a combination of new skills, bonuses to existing skills, and special abilities.

"A look at the skill sheet of a scout. Highlighted skills are already learned."

In order to enter a profession and gain access to the related skills, you must first learn the novice skill for that profession. Novice skills cannot be taught by other players; they can only be learned by paying an NPC trainer. Normally, novice skills will provide you with the basic skills for a profession, plus a few special abilities. It will also allow you to use that profession's most basic tools, as well as to have a title based on the profession.

The regular skills are listed in a four-by-four table in the skills page, accessible via the menu bar at the bottom of the screen. The horizontal rows are called tiers, and represent the relative level of the set. Having a tier one rifle skill means that you have only basic rifle abilities; having a tier four rifle skill means that you are an expert. The vertical columns are called disciplines. Normally, all of the skills in one of these vertical rows are variations of the same ability. As an example, a scout has four basic skills--exploration, trapping, hunting, and survival. The first discipline (vertical row) on a scout's skill screen has nothing but exploration skills (and is called the 'exploration discipline'), each one more powerful than the one below it.

Skills within a single discipline have to be learned in order, starting with tier one. Using the scout example (see the screenshot), you would first have to learn Exploration 1 (tier one) before you could learn Exploration 2 (tier two). On the other hand, you can learn the disciplines in any order, even mixing them up.

Most of the advanced classes are achieved by learning all of skills in a particular discipline, at which point the novice skill for a related profession can be learned, provided you have the experience and the money. Again using the scout example (and screenshot), a scout who learns the entire exploration discipline could then get the novice squad leader or creature handler skills. Note that some advanced classes require more than one complete discipline, and some of the most sought after advanced classes require master-level skill.

The master skill for each profession is the most advanced skill for that profession. In order to gain a master skill, you have to have learned every skill in the profession, completed every tier of every discipline. The master skill can then be learned if you have enough apprenticeship experience.

Gaining Experience

All skills, except for the basic profession novice sets, are earned by gaining experience, just like in most RPG's. Where Star Wars Galaxies differs is that most skills require a specific type of experience to be learned, and that type of experience can only be gained by using a similar skill.

As an example, the only way to get higher-level rifle skills is to earn rifle experience, and the only way to earn rifle experience is to use a rifle. Normally, each discipline requires its own type of experience, although there are a few instances where one type of experience can be applied to two or more disciplines, such as general crafting experience for Artisans, which can be used for three different disciplines.

For the most part, there is no way to gain the experience except to use a skill, although most skills have a few specific tricks or locations that can make the process much faster. While it would be impossible to include every one of the tricks for every skill here, what follows are some general hints for major skill groups.

Combat

The more difficult the creature you fight, the more experience you will gain from killing it. If you kill creatures that /con green (see the combat section for more detail on /con), you will receive very little or no experience, but if you kill creatures that /con red (which indicates that they are tougher relative to your own abilities), you will receive tons.

Unlike many RPGs, experience doesn't just go to the person who killed an enemy, nor is it divided evenly. Every person who fights gains experience individually based on their actions. The more damage, the more experience.

Because of the way experience is divided, a weak player can join a strong one, and all of them can benefit from working together. Remember, fighting stronger creatures gives better experience than fighting weak ones. Being in a group and hitting a creature five times that /cons red can give you more experience than being alone and hitting a weaker creature fifteen times.

When taking destroy missions (see Missions and Factions chapter), you will be hired to destroy creature nests. Destroy the creatures that surround the nest first, but don't destroy the nest itself right away. Target the nest, attack once, and hit the 'peace' button to stop attacking. Another creature will appear to defend the nest. Defeat this creature, hit the nest once, destroy the new defender, and so on. This will let you get the most possible experience from the mission.

Pay attention to how much experience you get from doing things. Two things that seem similar in difficulty may give significantly different amounts of experience.

Factor in downtime. It will often yield more experience in the long run to kill several weaker creatures every two minutes than to kill one stronger one, but be forced to heal for five minutes afterward.

Crafting

You aren't told how much experience you get from making a particular item, so make notes of how much experience you have before and after crafting an item to determine how much you get for it. Use this information to decide what to make for practice.

In general, the more complex the item, the more experience you get for making it.

Often, the items from your highest current skill tier will bring the best experience.

For the fastest items to make, look for things that take readily available resources, and don't require a secondary item (like a battery, bone plate, or cloth panel) to construct. Ideally, the fewer clicks and menus you go through when crafting an item, the faster you can churn them out.

The best way to gain experience is, therefore, to find the toughest item that you can still make quickly, then make it over and over and over again. When you run out of room, set a couple aside to sell, then destroy the rest of them and start over. It is tiring, tedious, and wasteful, but it is the fastest way.

Creature Handling Experience

You will receive a small amount of experience every time you train a new pet, teach it a trick, or use that pet to kill an enemy.

Experience can be earned pretty quickly by going to a nest area, taming one of the creatures, teaching it tricks, then releasing the creature and repeating the process.

If you have a baby creature and are trying to work your way up, but don't want your baby to die, then use an ability such as the taunt ability to distract the enemy, then order your creature to attack.

Apprenticeship Experience

Apprenticeship experience is the one type of experience that does not come from using skills. Apprenticeship experience comes only from teaching other players the skills you already know. It is used for only one thing; a very important thing--gaining master-level skills. If you plan on mastering three different professions (in other words, fully developing your character), you will end up needing close to two thousand points of apprenticeship experience. It can be very, very slow to get.

If you want to avoid a lot of frustration later in the game, plan early for the need, and teach your skills to others whenever you get the chance. Even if they do not pay you, you benefit from the teaching as much as they do from the free skill.

Learning New Skills and Abilities

Once you have the experience points you need for a new skill, you will still have to learn it. This requires a couple of things: skill points, and a trainer.

Skill Points

Every character starts the game with 250 skill points, and every skill you learn uses a few of them up. Those initial 250 points are enough to reach master level in three different professions with a few points left over. Don't worry about making bad decisions, though, as you can surrender a skill at any time, completely forgetting the skill, but regaining all of the skill points to be reused elsewhere.

By way of example, if you are a master marksman, a master scout, and a master tailor, and you decide that you want to become a bounty hunter, you can give up any or all of your Tailor skills to free up skill points so you can start learning bounty hunter skills. There is no limit to the number of times you can do this--you could theoretically have a character that has mastered every skill in the game at one time or another. It is important to note, though, that you do not regain the experience points that you used to learn the skill when you surrender it, only the skill points.

Trainers

Assuming you have both the skill points and the experience points to learn a new skill, you still have to find someone willing to train you in it. You generally have two options--players or NPCs.

NPCs, or Non-Player Characters, are the easiest option. All you have to do is walk up to the correct trainer, talk to him, and pay him a fee. The fee is the bad thing, as it is rather high. For a first-tier basic profession skill, it will cost you one thousand credits to be trained, and higher-tiered skills cost even more. Just learning all of the skills in a single basic profession would cost you around forty thousand credits!

Learning skills from players, on the other hand, takes longer. Unless you have a friend who can teach a skill, you have to stand around in a public place (crafting stations, cantinas, and medical centers are good) and ask, over and over, if someone has the skill. A few players charge to teach skills, but generally much less than NPC trainers do. Smart players don't charge, as they realize that they need the apprenticeship experience as much as you need the new skill. That said, it is often polite to tip players who train you. Some say that 100 credits per tier of the new skill is about right, and that is about 10% of what you would pay an NPC. Others tend to just tip 500 credits for each new skill they are taught.

Most of the time, you will want to learn your skills from other players. The game was designed to be played that way, it is much cheaper, and it benefits everybody. One exception is skills that you are pioneering. If you are the first person to make tier four tailor on your server, you will have to pay an NPC to learn it. Another exception is novice skills (both for basic classes and advanced classes), which other players are unable to teach. You will have to learn them from trainers.

Professions

While the following sections will cover each of the professions specifically, there are several important things that you should know about the professions in general. The first of these was stated earlier, and that is that you are able to surrender any skill at any time. If you make a wrong move with your character, and decide that you want to change your profession, then no problem. Simply go to someone who trains in the desired profession, and begin learning what they have to teach you.

A fortunate result of this method of handling the different professions is that you are able to train in any of the initial six professions right in the beginning. In fact, one of the best ways to generate your character is to choose a relatively well-rounded set of stats and choose your profession based on your character's starting equipment. Then, as soon as you are in the game, train in the other five basic professions as soon as you can, and you will be able to experiment to find out exactly what type of character you like the most. While it does cost 100 credits per extra profession to train in, this is actually a pittance when compared to the amount of cash you will be able to earn early on.

The next thing that is important to know, and this directly relates to the first, is that it is best to learn each and every skill that you are able to. Never pass up an opportunity for it, when you have the experience. Unfortunately it seems as if many players are often afraid of wasting their skill points. Since this is not possible, as you can always reclaim them, you will want to give yourself the biggest advantage that you can by learning everything that you can.

Basic Professions

While you will be able to select only one profession initially, you will be able to branch out and select as many as you want as soon as you find the trainers. As a result, you will want to take each of the basic professions that you can, in order to see which advanced professions you will want to move into.

Artisan

Artisans are the crafters and merchants of the galaxy, making everything from clothing to weapons, from droids to fireworks. At their lowest skill levels, artisans can make a few handy gadgets, but master artisans can build a city, outfit an army, or create a commercial empire.

Starting Skills

The novice artisan starts with the basic tools and skills to create and customize a wide variety of small items. You'll learn how to seek and harvest valuable resources - such as chemicals, minerals, and flora - from the world. You'll also get a variety of schematics for the creation of the most basic tools, clothing, foods, and weapons. It certainly isn't enough for to call yourself a master craftsman, but it is a start.

Disciplines

Engineering

Engineering is the discipline of technical construction. As you learn this discipline, you'll increase your skills in basic construction of technological equipment and machines, as well as your ability to experimentally adjust and tweak those machines to improve their function. As you progress, you'll gain the schematics to construct increasingly complex weapons, armor, tools, and even buildings. An artisan who masters the engineering discipline can advance into one of the technical specialty professions--droid engineer, architect, armorsmith, or weaponsmith.

Domestic Arts

The domestic arts disciplines teach the skills of cooking and tailoring. As skill is gained, the ability to create food and clothing is increased, as is the ability to improve existing designs through experimentation. As you rise in the skills of the domestic arts discipline, you'll gain the ability to use a greater variety of colors in your clothing designs. Furthermore, schematics will continue to be made available for more intricate dishes and items of clothing. Those artisans who achieve mastery in the discipline of domestic arts can move on to one of the professions specializing in domestic products--chef or tailor.

Business

The business discipline deals with the art and science of running a successful and profitable business. Businessmen will be able to charge for entry into their businesses, advertise their public auctions, and create machines to work in their shops, selling goods to their customers. As the artisan's skills increase, he can use increasingly effective types of vendors. An artisan who masters business will be able to move on and become a merchant.

Surveying

The discipline of surveying is absolutely vital for any successful artisan. Products are not made from thin air--they require raw materials, and surveying is how those materials are acquired. Early on, you'll use a surveying tool to retrieve small amounts of raw materials, and later on, you'll be able to make or buy automated harvesters for the same purpose. In either case, the surveying skill is also used to find out where these raw materials are located. As you improve your surveying skills, you can use the surveying tool to look further out and extract raw materials more efficiently.

Surveying doesn't lead to any advanced professions, but should not be overlooked. Without the surveying skill, an artisan would have to buy all of his raw materials--most likely from competitors, who would likely keep the best and rarest materials for themselves.

Complementary Professions

The fact that artisans spend so much time out in the wild, looking for resources and extracting them, makes safe travel absolutely vital. No other profession is as skilled at safe travel as the scout, who can hide from potential enemies, and escape more easily once discovered. Furthermore, many artisans, both basic and advanced, require bone or hide to make their wares, and only scouts can acquire these raw materials. If an artisan is not a scout, he will have to buy these things from one eventually.

General Strategies

Before you decide to follow artisan to become a weaponsmith, tailor, or any of the other advanced crafting professions, a bit of a warning is in order. Artisan is the most complex of professions, and requires the most dedication and effort to be fully effective. You can become a powerful marksman on an hour a week, or an agile dancer on one day a week, but to truly be an effective advanced artisan, you need to be available much more often, to maintain your inventory, advertise your products or shop, and to tend your fields of harvesters.

Given that, artisan can be very satisfying, especially if you create a brand name that is well known, and have people ask for you by name or travel from across the galaxy just to get one of your weapons. Just be aware of the amount of work it takes to move to the top of the chain!

On the other hand, if you just want some basic crafting skills to make a few simple items, don't be afraid to go for it. You can craft enough to gain and master the basic skills in your downtime, say while healing in a medical center or while sampling resources.

When you learn how to survey, you will begin to find especially strong concentrations of certain resources. When you find one that you want to come back to later, type /waypoint into the chat box to create a waypoint at your current coordinates. Once you do so, you can go into your datapad and use the radial menu on the waypoint to rename it to something meaningful, like "Meteoric Aluminum, 85%."

Be forewarned, each resource exists in limited amounts in a particular place, and can be mined out. You won't mine it out by sampling, but if there are a half dozen resource collectors in one spot, all extracting a certain low-grade ore, that spot can run out fairly quickly. Don't worry, new spots will show up to replace them, but they will likely be in different places, and your old waypoints will become useless.

Brawler

For all intents and purposes, the brawler is the tank profession in Star Wars Galaxies, and no group is complete without one. What is a tank, you ask? Well, a tank is the character that stands out in front and takes the blows so that the rest of your group can stand back and heal you or use ranged weapons to pelt the enemies. Having a tank allows the group's medic to focus on healing one person, instead of having to spread it around at random, and allows a group to be more focused in what they are doing. Depending on how many enemies there are, a group may need more than one tank; it is typical to have at least one in any group.

When choosing to be a brawler, there is really no reason to specialize in more than one of the four disciplines, unless you are looking to become a master brawler. You see, the brawler can specialize in unarmed combat, which could lead to the Teras Kasi artist, smuggler, or commando advanced professions, one-handed sword, which could lead to the fencer advanced profession, two-handed sword, which can lead to the swordsman advanced profession, or polearm, which leads to the pikeman advanced profession. Since you can only equip one of these weapons at a time, it simply doesn't make sense to attempt to learn all of them, and as a result it is best to simply specialize in one discipline.

Unarmed

Fancy yourself a martial artist? The road to being a martial artist is a long and hard one, and you will not have the luxury of using a weapon for extra damage along the way. That said, the reward is quite worth it, as you will be able to do things in combat that other professions will not, and you will be able to save the money that you would otherwise be spending on weaponry.

One-Handed Sword

Taking one-handed sword will enable you to study in the discipline of the fencer. While not quite as talented in their attacks as the martial artist, the one-handed discipline provides a good balance between the brute-force approach of the two-handed style and the delicate empty-handed style.

Two-Handed Sword

The two-handed discipline will prepare you for the swordsman profession, and is the more heavy-handed brawler discipline. Most of their attacks focus on knocking down and damaging groups, but they don't exercise as much finesse as many of the other professions.

Pike

If you choose the pike discipline, you will be training with polearms in order to work toward a profession as a pikeman. When equipped with a polearm, you will specialize in taking on groups of enemies, as most of the attacks will focus on knocking down or damaging multiple enemies. Any team would be glad to have someone specializing in the pike discipline when more than one enemy is accidentally pulled from an enemy group.

Master Brawler

If for some reason you choose to continue in the brawler profession until you have mastered all of the brawler disciplines, then you will be able to become a master brawler. Becoming a master brawler will unlock some abilities such as warcry 2 and berserk 2 that you would not otherwise get if you moved onto some of the more advanced professions, but it will also stunt your growth into advanced professions.

Brawler - cont.

Complementary Professions

Because the brawler profession is such a specialized profession, it makes sense to not only operate as a brawler, but as two or three other professions as well. The one profession that probably works best with the brawler is the scout. In fact, it is almost essential that you are a good scout if you want to be a good brawler. As a scout, you will be able to travel more easily and get more of a reward from killing animals (scouts can harvest bone and hide from dead fauna). Even more importantly, when an enemy runs away from you, you will be able to catch them more easily using the skills from both the brawler and the scout. If you also include the medic or entertainer profession then you will be able to be quite self-sufficient, unless you are looking to buy any items, at which point you would need to include the artisan line of skills.

All in all, the brawler, like the marksman, can combine pretty well with any of the professions and prove quite useful. The only profession that the brawler does not combine overly well with is the marksman. Combining those two professions really just doubles up on combat skills, which is inefficient when you can only increase one or the other at a time. As a result, you would progress more slowly in your combat abilities.

General Strategies

Because the brawler in a group is normally considered the tank, you will want to be the player who is always trying to put yourself between your group and the enemies. In other words, continually charge the enemies, draw them back, and let the rest of your group pelt them with ranged fire. Naturally it helps to have a good medic in your group when doing this.

If, on the other hand, you are playing as a loner, then you will want to be a bit more careful, and in-between battles make sure that you take the time to rest and recuperate. Otherwise you will suffer in any subsequent battles.

Additionally, when playing as the brawler you will want to make sure that you choose stats which are as balanced as possible. Many people tip their stats heavily in favor of health, thinking that the more they have, the more they will be able to take. This is not how Galaxies works; an enemy can target any of your stats depending on their chosen method of attack. If your stats are skewed too much in any one direction you will be easy pickings for quite a few enemies.

Entertainer

Entertainers, while not one of the most combat-effective professions, are definitely an important part of Star Wars Galaxies. They, along with the medics, are the people that are sought out when the warriors come in from a hard day of killing things. Their dancing or musical abilities can make the fatigue of battle melt away, while the image design skill can be fun as a party favor. Even if you are a warrior, it never hurts to have a bit of an entertainer's streak running through your character.

Starting Skills

As a dancer, the initial skills that you will start off with as an entertainer are, first off, your basic skills: dance, image design, and musician. Next you will also have the ability to do the eight flourishes for each dance or musical routine, the ability to play the Slitherhorn, a musical instrument, your first song, Starwars1, and you will have your first two dances: Basic1 and Rhythmic1.

Disciplines

Dance

Dance is used to make other players forget their troubles, and to relieve them of their fatigue. As you progress in dance you will slowly be working your way toward a career as a dancer. Slowly, however, is the operative word, for while you do gain experience any time you are dancing, it can take a very, very, very long time to gain much experience. Just keep in mind that you must be in a cantina for people's battle fatigue to go away, and, likewise, you will need to be in a cantina or camp to take away mind wounds.

Music

Being a musician is almost exactly like being a dancer. The difference, however, is that you will be using your instrument, instead of your body, to relieve people of their troubles. Playing music can lead to a profession as a musician.

Image Design

Someone who practices image design can practice their discipline anywhere, and while the effects of their discipline will be seen by all, their actions will have very little effect on the actual course of the game. You see, image design allows a character to modify their appearance or that of another character in the game, just as when they were originally making their characters. That said, many players do find this to be a fun way to pass the time, and enjoy seeing what kinds of combinations they can come up with. The image design discipline may lead to the image designer profession, if you so choose.

Entertainment Healing

Entertainment healing is not so much a discipline, as it is an offshoot of either dancing or playing music. As you dance or play music you will gain entertainment healing experience, which increases your ability to heal others.

Master Entertainer

If you are someone who has just decided to make a profession out of being the life of the party, then eventually you will qualify for master entertainer, at which point you will gain some great new abilities, dance moves, and a new song.

Complementary Professions

The entertainer profession can be taken in one of two ways: either as a more social profession, or as a solo profession. If you want to be more of a social character, interacting with other players in the game, then it is best to also take the medic or artisan profession, as they work quite well together. As a combination entertainer and medic you will be able to not only heal people's battle fatigue, but also the various wounds that they receive from battle. Likewise you will become a valuable addition to any party, as the party's scout will be able to set up a camp for you to dance at when out in the field, drastically increasing the longevity of any party.

Likewise, a combination entertainer and artisan will be able to take away battle fatigue, while also going out and manufacturing different items for the various players in the game. You will also be highly in demand as you would then also be able to construct structures for other people, a very valuable ability.

On the other hand, if you tend to be more of a loner than the social butterfly, taking the entertainer profession combines quite well with the scout, medic, and a more combat-focused profession. In this manner you would be able to fight your own battles, then, after the battle is over, set up camp, heal your wounds, and relieve yourself of any battle fatigue that you had.

General Strategies

Unless you are combining your character with one of the combat professions to work as a field entertainer, then there really isn't that much that you can strategize about as an entertainer. Simply remember to keep using the various flourishes when performing music or dancing to get more experience and do cool moves and you will basically have it down. Also remember to ask someone if you may practice image design on them before actually attempting it.

One of the things that may likely vary quite a bit, depending on what other professions you choose, is the spread of your stats. For instance, if you do not decide to include a combat profession in your repertoire of professions, and do not intend to go out into the field with small groups, then you will not need to focus on having much health at all. If, however, you decide to also work as an artisan or include one of the combat-oriented professions in your character, then you will need to balance your stats a bit when creating your character.

Marksman

Marksman is a martial profession for those who wish to learn to properly use long-range weapons like pistols and rifles. They are the typical warriors of Star Wars Galaxies, and comprise the vast majority of the military forces in the galaxy. The basic marksman skills are essential for anybody planning on fighting from a distance, and as you progress, you can choose to become a true expert in one or more types of weapon.

Starting Skills

As a novice marksman, you will be given a small bonus to speed and accuracy with each of the three types of ranged weapons (pistols, carbines, and rifles). While anybody can wield the entry-level CDEF model weapons, a novice marksman will also receive certifications to use the next, more advanced version of each weapon, like the DH17 model carbine. Novice marksmen will gain a few very basic special attacks, allowing them to fire their weapons at close-up attackers with less of penalty, and to overcharge their weapon for a more powerful shot.

Disciplines

Rifle

Rifles are ranged weapons with extreme range, but are almost useless if your enemy gets up close. The rifle discipline teaches you to wield rifles more quickly and more accurately, as well as how to defend yourself while fighting with a rifle. Characters studying the rifle discipline will learn special attacks, like head shots, designed to injure and disable an opponent, as well as damage his mind pool. You will also gain certifications allowing you to use more powerful weapons. Characters mastering this discipline may be able to move up to the rifleman profession.

Pistol

Pistols are very short-range weapons, and cannot fire at targets a long distance away. The pistol discipline teaches you to wield pistols more quickly and more accurately, as well as to defend yourself while fighting with a pistol. You will also learn attacks designed to more seriously damage an enemy's health, as well as acrobatic maneuvers designed to keep you alive against close-range attackers. You will also gain certifications allowing you to use more powerful weapons. Characters mastering this discipline may be able to move up to the pistoleer or smuggler professions

Carbine

Carbines are light rifles, similar to what would be called submachine guns in our own world. They strike a balance between pistols and rifles, having a much longer range than pistols, but still being effective as the enemy closes. The carbine discipline teaches the character to wield carbines more quickly and more accurately, as well as teaching him to defend himself while fighting with a carbine.

You will also learn special attacks designed to damage an enemy's action pool, like leg shots, as well as more powerful attacks like firing in automatic bursts. You will also gain certifications allowing you to use more powerful weapons. Those mastering the carbine discipline may be able to move up to the carbineer profession.

Ranged Support

The ranged support discipline does not focus on any single weapon, but rather on special abilities and attacks that are useful for all types of ranged weapons, such as the ability to aim, change position quickly, and defend yourself against attacks while fighting from a distance.

Those mastering ranged support may be able to move up to the squad leader or combat medic professions.

Master Marksman

Those who take the long road and become experts in all types of weapons and in the techniques of general ranged combat, you can become a master marksman. master marksmen immediately gain a bonus in speed and accuracy with all ranged weapons, a defensive bonus, and the ability to seriously overcharge their weapons for a devastating attack.

Those achieving the rank of master marksman may be able to become bounty hunters or commandos, provided they have the other skills necessary.

Marksman - cont.

Complementary Professions

Marksman is a very generalized profession, and we highly recommend it (or brawler) as a complement to any other profession. Regardless of what you do, you will eventually spend time fighting, and having just novice marksman skill for 100 credits will give you a big advantage over an unskilled fighter.

More specifically, marksman and scout make a fantastic combination, as the ranged weapons you learn to use as a marksman allow you to attack at a distance while moving. This skill meshes well with the scout's ability to run faster and more easily than any other profession. A scout/marksman can attack a slow melee opponent from distance, and then run while firing and take it down before it ever came close enough to fight back. In addition, many of a scout's skills, like harvesting and tent building, require that the scout kill something first, and a marksman's blaster is a great way to make things dead.

General Strategies

The main purpose of the marksman is combat, so most of the general combat strategies apply directly to the marksman. That said, there are some specific tricks that only a marksman can use.

If you are going for master marksman or one of the other advanced professions that require it, you will need all four of the marksman disciplines. If you are primarily a non-combat profession and just want enough skill to stay alive, choose either the combination of pistol and rifle or just carbine. The pistol and rifle combination costs more skill points, but excels at both long and short range fighting. Carbine is a blend of the two that saves skill points. If you need a bit more of an edge, take some of the ranged support skills to give your fighting a bit more oomph.

If you have a rifle or a carbine and have found a creature you want to attack, move back beyond your weapon's maximum range. You will know when you are there by watching the target; when the attack penalty beside the target's HAM (Health, Action, Mind) bar turns to two dashes "- -", you are out of range. Now move back toward the target until you are just barely in range. Go to a prone position first, and then hit it with your best attack. If you are lucky, your target will just stand there. This is not a bug, but is an intentional benefit to being prone. You can get several attacks in before the poor target can figure out where you are. You can then get a couple more shots in before the creature is able to close the distance to hit you. Once you master this, you will often be able to reduce a tough opponent's health by more than half before they ever get close enough to hit you back.

Whether you use the sniping method described above to start combat, or get ambushed, you will eventually get close-up with an enemy. Marksmen are at a huge disadvantage against close-combat opponents. If you are going for master marksman or just chose to study pistol, switch to it when opponents get close, as the penalty for close up fighting is much less with a pistol. If not, you need to learn to kite your opponents.

Kiting is the process of running away from them while fighting from a distance, continuing to damage them while keeping them far away. As your opponent gets closer, stand up and run directly away from them. You will automatically continue to attack them, firing over your shoulder. Continue the attack this way, turning every now and then as needed to stay in the area. Continue to queue up special attacks, but avoid those that drain your health pool--if you drain your health and your enemy catches up, he can kill you easily. If you are fighting a much faster opponent, you may need to use burst run to keep ahead of him. In any case, be careful to watch your radar while you kite, as you can easily run into a different pack of enemies.

Medic

The medic is quite likely the most dependent profession in Star Wars Galaxies. Unless you are crafting something to use on other players, there is almost nothing that you can do to gain experience or money without another player, unless you have multiple professions and are able to handle your own missions. Not even healing yourself will get you experience, unless you had to craft an item to do it.

Starting Skills

As a medic, you'll start out with the basic abilities to heal damage and wounds, as well as the ability to tend damage and wounds. You'll also be able to forage for medical supplies, and be able to craft a biological effect controller, liquid suspension, food and chemical crafting tool, and small stimpack. You'll get a five point bonus to each of the following skills: injury treatment, wound treatment, medicine use, and injury treatment speed. Medics also receive 10-point bonuses to medicine assembly, medicine experimentation, and medical foraging.

Disciplines

First Aid

First aid allows you to get more bang for your buck from medicine usage, as well as use even more varieties of medicine. If you intend to heal with anything but your mind, this is definitely a discipline that you will want to focus on to quite an extent, in order to keep the brawlers in the field alive long enough to defeat enemies. First aid does not lead to any other profession paths, though it is needed if you wish to become a combat medic or doctor.

Diagnostics

If you're looking to be able to heal more than one wound an hour, then you will want to improve your diagnosis discipline. Sure, that's an exaggeration, but in the heat of battle it doesn't feel like that much of an exaggeration, watching your comrades die and not being able to do anything about it for long stints of time. Even if you are just staying in the medical wards gaining experience healing those who enter, you will still want to improve your diagnosis skill so that you can gain experience faster. Diagnosis does not lead to any other profession paths, but it is necessary if you ever want to become a combat medic, doctor, or just a competent medic.

Pharmacology

Pharmacology is used in order to increase your medical foraging and medicines use skills. If you want to craft your own medicines, instead of relying on others for them, then this is definitely a skill that you will want to master. Besides, it will also improve your ability to actually use the medicines you administer. You will only need to master pharmacology if you wish to become a doctor or combat medic.

Organic Chemistry

Organic chemistry is the study of making, mixing, and creating the various medicines that you will use. In other words, if you have any desire to move beyond the basic stimpack that you are able to create early on, then you will need to practice organic chemistry. Mastering organic chemistry can lead to a profession as a bio-engineer, and is naturally required for combat medics, doctors, and competent medics.

Master Medic

The master medic is a certified competent medic. They are not only able to get some much-needed healing out in a timely manner, but are also ready for the advanced professions such as doctor and combat medic (note that combat medics must meet other necessary pre-requisites). Naturally, you will get several important bonuses for mastering the medic profession.

Complementary Professions

When you are trying to be a medic, nearly every profession is complementary at first. If you want to be more of a homebody and socialize with other players, then it will payoff to become an artisan or entertainer or both, so that you will also be able to provide goods and mind-healing services in addition to your medical services.

Likewise, if you want to be a combat medic, you will want to take up a ranged skill and join the boys out in the field killing things. Naturally your focus should still be more on the medical side than the combative side, if you want to work your way into the advanced medical professions. Keep in mind that the combat medic is particularly desired by combatants in the field for their prized ability to heal at a distance and keep a party going.

One other combination that works exceptionally well is the medic/creature handler. Even though it will take some time to reach the point of creature handler, when you do reach that point, it will pay off. Your creatures can get damaged quite easily, so every creature handler will need some medic skills if they want to keep them around for long.

General Strategies

If you are staying in town, just focus on making medicines (you can pick up supplies at the bazaar) and healing in the medical centers. Naturally, you will be reliant on tips from other players, which are often sparse, but this is a great way to get a lot of medical experience quickly, and get acquainted with other medic players who can train you for free or cheap.

On the other hand, if you want to go out in the field, then always keep in mind that your primary goal is to keep your party alive. The medic that can't do that is a medic that isn't worth much. As a result you will need to almost always have the group tanks selected and be prepared to heal them at a moment's notice. Create aliases or macros to heal quickly, and get used to playing with mouse look off so that you can access your menus in a flash when necessary. Playing this way can be more demanding, but it is also more rewarding being able to group with other players, and you will be able to get cash more easily this way.

Scout

The scout is a profession designed for those that want to explore and be self-sufficient in the country. It is for those that want to spend their time hunting, traveling, and interacting with wild creatures. Scout skills are necessary for those who wish to move on to the more advanced professions that use a scout's expertise, such as creature handlers, rangers, or bounty hunters.

Starting Skills

As a novice scout, you'll have some skills that are unique and improve your ability to survive in the wild. You'll learn the skills of trapping creatures and the ability to put together a camp that will allow yourself and your friends to have their wounds healed when far from a medical center. You'll learn to take bones, meat, and hides from the creatures you have hunted, which gives you everything you need to craft a few simple items, like camps and traps. Scouts also have a basic understanding of wild creatures, and can gain more information than other professions from examining them.

Disciplines

Exploration

The exploration discipline is a set of skills that allows you to move about in the wilderness and to avoid trouble. Burst running is improved, costing fewer points to use, and you'll eventually gain the ability to sprint at full speed up the steepest of mountains. The skill of camouflage is learned, as is the complementary ability to mask your scent as you sneak past hostile creatures. Those who become masterful in the discipline of exploration may be able to move up to the professions of creature handler or Squad Leader.

Trapping

Trapping is just what it sounds like--the skills involved in trapping creatures. As you learn the trapping discipline, you'll gain the ability craft more and more complex traps, as well as to use them effectively against targets. These traps can then be used to immobilize, poison, or otherwise disable a creature while the trapper fights it. There are no other professions that require trapping as a prerequisite, save for master scout.

Hunting

Scout hunting skills give you a steady improvement in the ability to harvest hides, bones, and meat from the creatures you kills. This allows you to harvest them more efficiently and waste less, providing you with more of these valuable raw materials. To go along with this, your ability to effectively attack creatures with ranged weapons is increased. Hunting is more than just killing and skinning prey, though. The hunting discipline also increases your general knowledge about the creatures of the world, allowing you to gain more useful information about a creature, its strengths, and its weaknesses by using Galaxies' "examine" feature (available by clicking on a creature and using the radial menu).

Those mastering the discipline of hunting will have learned a great deal about the ways of the creatures of the galaxy, and can possibly move up to either the profession of creature handler or bio-engineer.

Survival

The survival discipline teaches you how to survive on your own, away from civilization. You'll learn, first of all, to forage for food and drink in the wilds. While eating is not necessary in Star Wars Galaxies, doing so gives your character bonuses. While studying survival, a scout will also be able to craft and erect increasingly complex camp sites. The best camps are even capable of defending their owner while he rests! Those who master the discipline of survival will have some of the skills necessary to move on to the profession of squad leader.

Master Scout

Once a scout has mastered the disciplines of exploration, trapping, hunting and survival, and has proven that knowledge by passing it on to others, he can move up to being a master scout. A master scout gains significant bonuses to all of the skills previously learned in the four scouting disciplines.

Once declared a master scout, a character has one of the basic requirements to become a bounty hunter, putting his skills to use hunting more... intelligent creatures, or a ranger, remaining in the wilds to master their secrets.

Scout - cont.

Complementary Professions

Scouts move fast--it is what they do best. This makes them an ideal complement to either of the two main combat professions. A scout/marksman can kite (fight while running) better than any other profession combination, and a scout/brawler is at less of a disadvantage when their opponents have ranged weapons, as they can close quickly to melee range, even if their opponent is running or atop a hill.

Scouts also combine well with both medics and entertainers. The scout has the ability to set up a camp. While in a camp, any character's wounds will gradually decrease. It is still a slow process, though, and a scout/medic can actively heal those wounds while in camp. Regardless, neither a camp nor a medic can take care of battle fatigue, which can be just as debilitating as wounds. A scout/entertainer can let his friends sit and recover in his camp while he dances or plays music to replenish their shot nerves. Obviously, a scout/medic/entertainer combination would be the ultimate in battlefield medicine, allowing a party to rest and heal much quicker than would be possible in any other way outside of a large city.

Artisans also do well when combined with scouts. The scout's ability to move well in the wilds will be of tremendous benefit to artisans who need to go out and survey for resources to build equipment. Also, when a scout builds traps and camps, he is gaining general crafting experience points that will go to waste unless spent on skills found in the artisan profession.

General Strategies

There is one very important thing to notice about scouts. Two of their disciplines, hunting and trapping, deal specifically with things you have killed, or are going to kill. Another, exploration, is learned with the experience you get from killing and skinning prey. Although the scout is not specifically a combat profession, and has no combat skills (other than a good bonus to hit creatures), it is still very combat-intensive. It is important to keep this in mind, because if you want anything beyond the most basic scout skills, you will find it very difficult if you don't have at least some basic marksman or brawler skills.

The one disadvantage that scouts have is that their experience can be tough to get. Scouting experience early on comes only from skinning creatures that you have slain, and the rewards aren't huge. Trapping is a bit easier, but requires a good bit of time. Survival experience is easy--just rest in a camp as often as you can.

Because scouts gain experience slowly early on, and because many of their skills require other skills to be fully effective, becoming a pure scout is not recommended. Scout is one profession that simply does not work well alone. Still, the skills of a scout are fantastic, and complement many other professions very well, so they are not to be overlooked. Look at scout as a profession used to improve other professions.

Taking the above into account, if you want to become a scout, I recommend that you not focus on scouting to begin with. If you want to become a marksman/scout, as an example, focus on learning the marksman skills first, but take the extra time to skin your kills and build camps. By the time you are getting good as a marksman, your scouting skills will have improved enough in the background that they'll be more effective on their own, and easier to improve further.

Remember, sitting in your camp is a fast, easy way to build up survival experience, but you get more if there are other people in the camp with you. If someone asks to share your camp, let them--it will only end up benefiting you with extra experience.

You can do other things while you rest in camp, too. Medics, artisans, and scouts can all craft items while in the camp, and gain experience from both activities simultaneously. Similarly, artisans surveying and sampling resources can sample them while in a camp, again gaining two types of experience at once.

Advanced Professions

After completing the necessary pre-requisites from the basic professions you will be ready to move onto some of the more advanced professions, and become a better warrior or a more desirable support character around town or in battle.

Architect

An architect is an artisan who specializes in the art of creating buildings and furniture. Architects can build homes for players, provide shops to merchants, and design and sell the facilities that drive industry in Star Wars Galaxies. Eventually, most players will want a safe place to keep their extra rifle, their extra armor, and their extra clothes. Architects supply it to them.

Starting Skills

A novice architect gains the schematics necessary to design a variety of very simple houses, industrial facilities, and furniture items.

Disciplines

Furniture

The furniture discipline gives an architect the schematics for a huge variety of furniture items, from the simple to the complex, that people can use to add decoration and utility to their buildings.

Construction

The construction discipline deals entirely with the architect's ability to experiment with designs to create stronger, more effective buildings.

Installations

Installations is the discipline that gives an architect access to increasingly complex schematics for industrial buildings such as harvesters and factories.

Buildings

This discipline gives an architect the schematics to build a variety of homes, as well as a few basic functional home improvements.

Master Architect

Those who master all of the architect skills may become a master architect. You'll be rewarded with a significant increase in your ability to assemble and improve buildings, and get the schematics for a variety of high-quality furniture items. Most notably, a master architect will gain the ability to build guild halls, perhaps the most in-demand of all buildings.

Armorsmith

The galaxy is not a friendly place. Even the best marksman sometimes slips up and gets hit. Even the fastest brawler has to pass through fire to get to his victim. Armor helps prevent those incidental hits from being lethal. Most serious fighters will want armor, and the best they can find. It is the armorsmith who will make it for them.

Starting Skills

A novice armorsmith will gain the ability to craft some very simple armor, as well as an armor power-up.

Disciplines

Personal Armor

An armorsmith studying the discipline of personal armor will gain the schematics to create a variety of types of armor for wear by individuals.

Layers

This discipline allows the armorsmith to create special layers that can be incorporated into other types of advanced armor, providing extra protection. Each level of this discipline will make different types of resistant layers available to the armorsmith.

Deflectors

This is the discipline that deals with the techniques of creating personal deflector shields, which can be worn along with regular armor to provide increased defense against some types of attacks. Those that study the discipline will receive schematics to create increasingly effective personal deflectors.

Techniques

The techniques discipline teaches the skills necessary to be more successful while creating armor, as well as those necessary to experiment and create armor that is more effective than the standard.

Master Armorsmith

Those armorsmiths who achieve the master level skill will gain significant bonuses to their ability to create and improve armor, as well as the schematics for some of the most effective types of armor in the galaxy.

Bio-Engineer

Pushing the boundaries of science, bio-engineers are medics and scouts who have learned to take samples of the DNA of wild creatures, engineer it, and use it to create new, specialized creatures for use as companions. Bio-engineers can also use sampled DNA to create biologically enhanced components for tailors and chefs.

Starting Skills

A novice bio-engineer gains the basic ability to harvest DNA from wild creatures (though the process is dangerous, often deadly to the creature). The novice also gains the ability to craft new creatures from his samples, as well as the ability to experimentally improve upon their basic design. A novice bio-engineer also gains a few basic DNA templates to work with.

By studying the discipline of tissue engineering, a bio-engineer gains the ability to craft a number of biologically active supplements that chefs can use in their food preparations, as well as genetic-based materials that tailors can use to give a piece of clothing special strengths or resistances.

DNA Sampling

DNA sampling is the discipline that improves a bio-engineer's skill in taking DNA samples from living creatures. The more highly skilled the bio-engineer, the more effective the samples will be, and the less dangerous the processes of extraction will be to the subject creature.

Engineering Techniques

Engineering techniques will improve a bio-engineer's ability to create new creatures, as well as his skill in experimentally altering their genetic makeup to cause them to be more powerful.

Master Bio-engineer

Those few with the skill and dedication to reach the level of master bio-engineer will receive significant bonuses to the skills needed to harvest DNA, create creatures, and perform genetic experiments. They will also receive schematics and DNA templates for some of the most powerful of creatures and biological materials in the galaxy.

Bounty Hunter

Sometimes, people do things they ought not to have done to their associates. The associates are understandably upset, but aren't always warriors capable of setting things straight. That is when they hire a bounty hunter. Being experts in both combat and scouting, bounty hunters seek out the hardest of all prey--the sentient creatures (players) who have angered somebody enough that he or she is willing to pay to get back what was lost, be it material, credits, or honor.

Starting Skills

A novice bounty hunter gains, first and foremost, the ability to take basic missions from the various bounty hunter terminals located around the galaxy. Bounty hunters also gain the certification to wield light lightning cannons and scatter pistols, as well as basic boosts to the skills involved with using lightning cannons.

Disciplines

Investigation

Early skills in the investigation discipline give bounty hunters the ability to use seeker droids to locate their quarry. Later skill levels greatly improve the speed, accuracy, and efficiency of the droids. As bounty hunters improve in this discipline, they gain the ability to accept more difficult bounties from terminals.

Bounty Carbine Specialization

This discipline provides bonuses to accuracy and speed with a standard carbine, as well as specialized attacks with carbines designed to momentarily confuse or disable targets.

Bounty Pistol Specialization

The bounty pistol specialization disciplines give bounty hunters steadily increasing speed and accuracy modifiers with a normal pistol, as well as a number of specialized attacks to severely injure their targets.

Light Lightning Cannon Specialization

This discipline provides a bounty hunter with basic skill improvements in their accuracy and speed while wielding a light lightning cannon, as well as a number of special attacks with that weapon.

Master Bounty Hunter

Master bounty hunters gain additional improvements to their ability to effectively utilize tracking droids, bonuses to their ranged defenses, and improvements in their accuracy with pistols and carbines. They also gain the ability to use a few extremely powerful special attacks to ensure that their bounties don't get away from them.

Carbineer

A carbineer is a marksman who has chosen to focus on the medium-range carbine, learning the special skills, techniques, and attacks that will allow mastery of the weapon. Carbineers are the most versatile of marksmen, able to fight from a good distance, and yet still able to hold their own when things get up close and personal.

Starting Skills

A novice carbineer gains improved speed and accuracy with carbines, as well as advanced versions of some of the special attacks they learned as marksmen. They will also gain certification to wield an elite carbine.

Disciplines

Carbine Assault Tactics

This discipline teaches a carbineer to dramatically improve speed with a carbine, as well as providing a number of special attacks to stun and disable opponents.

Carbine Marksmanship

The carbine marksmanship discipline focuses on improving a carbineer's accuracy, as well as providing a couple of special attacks that slow down opponents or severely injure them.

Carbine Counterinsurgency

This set of skills allows a carbineer to counterattack, defend against some special attacks, and provide a few simple but damaging special attacks.

Carbine Special Abilities

This discipline allows a carbineer to fire more accurately while moving, and also provides special attacks that do significant damage to individuals or groups of targets.

Master Carbineer

The master carbineer receives moderate bonuses to all important skills, including aiming and shooting while moving.

Chef

Wookiees are hairy, Trandoshans are scaly, and Humans are squishy, but they all like to eat! Eating and drinking, while technically optional in Star Wars Galaxies, have lots of benefits that should not be ignored. Similar to potions in fantasy games, a bellyful of good food and drink can make all the difference in a tough fight, and it is a chef who specializes in making the best consumables in any world.

Starting Skills

A novice chef gains an immediate improvement in his ability to create and improve upon dishes and drinks, as well as a number of schematics for popular foods and beverages.

Disciplines

Entrees

The entrees discipline provides the chef not with skills, but with recipes to make increasingly complex meals.

Desserts

While it doesn't grant any skill bonuses, the desserts discipline provides the chef with numerous schematics for enjoyable sweets and confections.

Mixology

Sure to be popular in the rougher star ports, the discipline of mixology allows a chef to create numerous intriguing, palatable drinks.

Cooking

The cooking discipline improves a chef's ability to successfully create dishes, or improve upon them through experimentation.

Master Chef

Upon mastering the arts of cooking and drink mixing, a chef may become a master chef. Master chefs get further bonuses to cooking abilities, as well as the recipes for the galaxy's most sought-after culinary delights.

Combat Medic

While the combat medic may seem very similar to the doctor, they are actually quite different, if complementary, professions, and a master of both will be highly prized. That said, the combat medic is more focused on treating wounds at a range, instead of close-up. This enables you to be more effective in combat, because you may not always have the luxury of being right next to someone who needs healing. Ranged treatment also allows you to stay further from combat, keeping you safe from harm. Additionally, the combat medic can damage opponents with noxious treatments, if he so chooses.

If you want to be able to even call yourself a combat medic in anything but name alone, then you will need to practice and master ranged healing distance. Otherwise you will have to continually get close to your teammates in order to heal them, and that will put you in danger and cause them to have to wait longer for necessary life-saving medicine.

Ranged Healing Speed

What good is being able to heal your allies at a distance if you are only able to do it at a snail's pace? Well, in order to be able to heal your allies without having to sit around for a minute between heals, you will also need to master the art of ranged healing speed, as this will enable you to heal more allies faster.

Combat Medicine Crafting

While this discipline may be called combat medicine crafting, medicine won't be all that you are crafting. By studying combat medicine crafting you will be able to heal all allies that are near you, as well as craft stimpacks that are capable of delivering disease or poison to the enemies around you. Naturally this can make many battles go much smoother for your allies, when you are able to damage all the nearby enemies so directly.

Combat Medic Support

Combat Medic Support will increase the effectiveness of each stimpack or other medicine delivery unit. As a result you should increase this skill whenever you are able. After all, what good is being able to heal someone from a distance and quickly, if you're only healing for the minimum amount each time?

Commando

When either the Rebellion or the Empire needs something destroyed, or a tough job carried out, they hire a commando. A commando is a warrior who has mastered the ways of both ranged and basic unarmed combat. He learns to fight more effectively using a number of specialty and explosive devices, like rocket launchers, acid rifles, and thermal detonators. He is the elite soldier, the one who stands out amongst the rank and file troops of an army.

Starting Skills

A novice commando learns to manufacture advanced explosives, use flamethrowers, acid rifles, and thrown weapons more effectively in combat, and gains certifications in a broad range of advanced weaponry.

Disciplines

Field Tactics

This discipline allows a commando to use a number of different thrown weapons in combat, as well as giving him skill bonuses to use them more effectively. It also includes a number of basic defensive bonuses.

Heavy Weapons Support

This discipline gives bonuses to a commando's speed and accuracy with a range of heavy weapons, as well as certifications in a number of advanced heavy weapons, such as particle beam cannons.

Flamethrower Specialization

The flamethrower specialization discipline gives bonuses to speed and accuracy with flamethrowers, as well as a number of special attacks.

Acid Rifle Specialization

Commandos studying this discipline will gain improvements to their skill with acid rifles, as well as a number of special acid rifle attacks. They will also learn to manufacture a few advanced forms of explosives.

Master Commando

Those earning the level of master commando are some of the galaxy's elite soldiers, gaining bonuses to their skill with heavy rocket launchers and thrown weapons, some advanced special attacks, and certification to allow them to use the devastating proton grenade.

Creature Handler

Despite the prolific use of technology, most planets still have vast areas of primal nature, full of wild beasts. A creature handler is one who has gained such an understanding of nature that he can tame the wild beasts, using them almost as pets to do his bidding, be it to guard him, attack his opponents, or carry his gear.

Starting Skills

A novice creature handler learns the basic skills to tame wild, non-aggressive creatures, as well as the ability to keep one and store two pets. Creature handlers also learn some basic commands to control pets.

Disciplines

Creature Taming

This discipline begins by increasing the handler's ability to tame wild creatures, and, over time, allows handlers to more easily tame creatures of increasing power. Creature taming also gives the ability to tame aggressive creatures.

Creature Training

The creature training discipline slowly increases the number of pets you can keep in storage, and gives the handler new, more complex commands to manage pets.

Creature Empathy

Creature empathy gives a creature handler emotional control over his pets, allowing him to teach them tricks to remove their battle fatigue or to strengthen and enrage them when needed in battle. It also slowly increases the number of pets that can be stored.

Creature Management

Creature management allow creature handlers to group with their pets, have them follow another player, and perhaps most importantly, allows the handler to use an additional pet. Creature management also allows handlers to transfer their pets to other creature handlers.

Master Creature Handler

Those who have learned all there is to learn about taming and controlling wild beasts may choose to become a master creature handler, gaining skill in taming hostile and non-hostile creatures, as well as the ability to have an additional pet.

Dancer

Becoming a dancer is a natural outgrowth of studying dancing and entertainment healing as an entertainer. While this career path will not help you with combat in any way, it is quite fulfilling in that players will always be seeking you out when they come in from their hunting trips, and you will often find yourself quite in-demand as a result. Besides, this profession is just fun!

Starting Skills

A novice dancer will gain the poplock and popular dancing techniques, as well as a +5 bonus to wound healing (dancing), and +10 bonuses to dance knowledge, battle fatigue healing (dancing), and dancing mind enhancement.

Disciplines

Dancing Techniques

If you are looking to do more than just dance, then studying dancing techniques will enable you to create special effects on the dance floor, such as letting off smoke bombs, or having disco balls appear in mid-air. Naturally this can make things a bit more entertaining for the people who are watching, and, as a result, may even yield better tips.

Dancer's Wound Healing

The rate at which your patrons' wounds heal is not fixed. By studying dancer's wound healing you will be able to heal their mental wounds faster. Then again, this might make the patrons go away sooner, so the choice is yours.

Dancing Knowledge

By studying dancing knowledge you will learn to do progressively harder dances. First you will gain the ability to do popular 2, then poplock 2, then lyrical, exotic, and exotic 2. While this won't have any effect on the people watching you dance, it will improve your ability to move your body.

Dancer's Fatigue Healing

By studying dancer's fatigue healing you will be able to more quickly do away with your patrons' battle. Since battle fatigue often takes longer to heal than wounds, studying dancer's fatigue healing will be much appreciated by those that come to watch you dance.

Master Dancer

If you reach the title of master dancer then you're ready for the big time. You will learn exotic 3 and 4, and will be ready to swing on a pole with the best of them.

Doctor

The doctor is quite similar to the combat medic, except that, instead of focusing on how to heal your allies at a distance and on damaging enemies, the doctor will focus on healing for greater amounts damage and on being able to provide better medicines. As they get higher in their disciplines, specifically wound treatment, good doctors can even revive dead players.

Starting Skills

A novice doctor will start out with heal state, and the ability to create cure poison, blinded state, and dizzy state medpacks. In addition they will receive a +5 bonus to wound treatment, wound treatment speed, and medicine use. Doctors also receive +10 bonuses to medicine assembly and medicine experimentation.

Disciplines

Wound Treatment Speed

Wound treatment speed is what everyone will be quite happy with when you are in the medical center. Sure, everyone will be glad if you are able to heal for a lot each time, but if you don't have long pauses between healings, it will just feel like you're doing more. If you go out into the field, wound treatment speed becomes more important than healing great amounts of damage in one shot. This is particularly true when multiple allies are getting hit hard.

Wound Treatment

Not only will wound treatment enhance your ability to heal other players, but as you study wound treatment you will also obtain the ability to enhance other players' attributes, as well as revive them from the dead. Needless to say, if you are out in the field with a party of other players, being able to revive those who are killed is a huge advantage, and your party will love you for it.

Doctor's Medicine Knowledge

By going up the doctor's medicine knowledge tree you'll be able to add 35 more points to your medicine use skill, enabling you to be more competent when administering various medicines to your patients. While this is an important discipline, you may receive better results by focusing on the other three disciplines first.

Doctor's Medicine Crafting

Studying the doctor's medicine crafting discipline will enable you to construct progressively better medicines. As medicine crafting does not take medical experience like the rest of the doctor's disciplines, you should be able to progress through this discipline as fast as you choose, depending on how many medicines you craft.

Master Doctor

While, upon reaching master doctor, you will not learn any new abilities, you'll learn to create several new medicines. You'll also receive some major boosts to your existing skills. In addition, the master doctor is arguably the best healer in the game, and if you have reached this point you will be in high demand by any decent party.

Droid Engineer

Droids are mechanical constructs with artificial intelligence and personality, constructed to serve organic life forms. Droid engineers are artisans who have chosen to concentrate on the complex and challenging science of constructing droids for a variety of purposes. They can create anything from small mechanical storage units to complex combat machines.

Starting Skills

Novice droid engineers don't gain any new skills, but rather a variety of schematics for one basic droid type, and a number of basic construction options.

Disciplines

Droid Production

The droid production discipline covers a wide variety of techniques of droid manufacturing, such as creating a droid to store items or data, to use medical techniques, or a number of other specialized functions. It also allows the engineer more options for a droid's personality.

Droid Construction

The droid construction discipline allows the engineer to increase their droids' built-in armor and repair abilities.

Droid Refinement

The discipline of droid refinement allows the droid engineer to create more complex droids, improve upon existing plans, and customize them to suit any need.

Droid Blueprints

While this discipline gives the engineer a small bonus to the ability to construct and customize droids, the main benefit of this discipline is an ever-increasing number of droid blueprints, enough to create a droid for any purpose.

Master Droid Engineer

A master droid engineer gains significant bonuses to the ability to successfully build complex droids, improve upon their designs, and customize their options. They also gain the schematics for the most complex types of droids, and for the most valuable droid improvements.

Fencer

Instead of focusing on the finesse of the unarmed combat, the fencer works at pure damage output, so long as they have a good weapon. They are also equipped with a few crowd-control skills, however they are quite limited, much like the Teras Kasi Artist.

Starting Skills

The novice fencer will gain the ability to use the stun baton, as well as the one-hand hit. They will also receive a +4 bonus to one-handed melee toughness, a +5 bonus to melee defense, ranged defense, and dodge, and a +10 bonus to both one-handed weapon accuracy and one-handed weapon speed.

Disciplines

Fencing Stances and Grips

Working on fencing stances and grips will improve your ability to take damage, as well as let you learn new techniques for hitting multiple parts of an opponent's body, or for making multiple opponents dizzy. This is the most important skill to work on if you want to become tougher as a fencer.

Footwork

The footwork discipline alternates between defensive skill modifications and new attack abilities that either wound an opponent's health or damage multiple targets.

Fencing Technique

Fencing technique, like footwork, also alternates between more defensive skill mods and new attack abilities. The attack abilities that you will learn from fencing technique, however, are all designed to target an opponent's health pool with increasingly devastating blows.

Fencing Finesse

Fencing finesse is all about blinding targets and recovery from posture changes. If you find yourself kneeling or laying down when you don't want to, then you will definitely want to spend some time on these skills. If you don't, then you may want to work up some of the other skills first.

Master Fencer

The master fencer is someone who can dish out the damage against one, and in limited cases, multiple targets. The pure damage output that a fencer is capable of can be truly frightening.

Image Designer

The image designer, while not the most active profession, is a profession that allows you to modify the appearance of other players, enabling them to change their characters if they are unhappy with the physical specifications when they made their character.

Starting Skills

The novice image designer will receive a +1 bonus to hair styling, body form, and face-form.

Disciplines

Hairstyling

By studying the hairstyling discipline you will gain a greater control over what hairstyles are available when modifying players.

Facial Customizations

Facial customizations will allow a player to have a greater control over what modifications an image designer can make to another player's facial features.

Body Customization

By studying body customization, you will eventually be able to modify another player's most intimate details...

Markings Customization

Studying markings customization will open up a wider variety of markings that the image designer will be able to select when modifying another player.

Master Image Designer

If you reach the point of master image designer then you are basically like a plastic surgeon that can perform his 'art' anywhere. You will have full control over another player's body, and will be able to change almost anything about them. Naturally however, all of this is with the consent of the other player.

Merchant

Merchants are a natural extension of, and a complement to the artisan and its related professions. Merchants focus on mastering the art of business, of buying and selling, and of advertising. Many run their own shops as a sideline to their crafting profession, and many team up with several other master craftsmen to operate a one stop market to fill everybody's needs.

Starting Skills

Novice merchants immediately gain the ability to hire a few more types of vendors, as well as the vital ability to hire additional vendors simultaneously.

Disciplines

Advertising

The advertising discipline allows you to train your vendors to speak slogans when players pass by, allows your shop to appear on the planetary map, and lets you hire NPCs to go out and advertise on your behalf.

Efficiency

The efficiency discipline reduces the fees involved with running a business and selling goods.

Hiring

Merchants who work with the hiring discipline will have more options as to who (or what) they hire to work in their shops.

Management

The management discipline enables a merchant to hire progressively greater numbers of vendors to work for him.

Master Merchant

Master merchants have learned every skill available to merchants. They gain the ability to hire the very best of the best of the galaxy's vendors to work for them.

Musician

The musician, much like the dancer, is the natural progression from the entertainer career. After you have proven that you have what it takes to hit the more elite ranks in the entertainment world of Star Wars Galaxies, you will be able to play the beat for everyone else to swing to. While the dancers do it with their bodies, you will be able to do it with your fingers on your instrument.

Starting Skills

The novice musician will learn to play and craft several new instruments as well as gain a +5 bonus to music knowledge and wound healing (music), as well as +10 bonuses to battle fatigue healing (music), musical mind enhancement, and instrument assembly.

Disciplines

Musical Techniques

Studying musical techniques will enhance your ability to craft musical instruments, learn some special effects that can be worked into your music, as well as increase your effectiveness at healing other players' mind injuries. You will also learn to craft and play several new musical instruments by studying this discipline.

Musician's Wound Healing

By studying musician's wound healing you will be able to heal the wounds of other players faster.

Musical Knowledge

Studying musical knowledge will not only give you a boost to your music knowledge skill, but will also allow you to learn to play several new instruments and learn several new songs.

Musician's Fatigue Healing

Musician's fatigue healing will enable you to heal the battle fatigue of other players faster.

Master Musician

By reaching the point of master musician you will gain a spattering of bonuses as well as the ability to play the song Virtuoso and the ability to play the Nalargon instrument.

Pikeman

If you want to be that one special guy that every group looks for (besides a medic) then the pikeman is for you. The pikeman is the master of crowd control, as most of his attacks deal with doing relatively average damage to as many enemies as are around him. Back the pikeman up with a good medic and you have something that can be a winning combination.

Starting Skills

Once you venture out onto the road of the novice pikeman you will receive the polearm hit 2, as well as vibro lance certification. You will also receive +5 bonuses to melee defense and block, as well as +10 bonuses to polearm accuracy, polearm speed, and polearm toughness.

Disciplines

Polearm Stances

By studying polearm stances you will gain several new ways to strike your opponents, as well as increase the speed at which you are able to strike opponents.

Polearm Offensive Techniques

Polearm offensive techniques will teach you to be able to target the legs of an opponent, or to hit multiple targets.

Polearm Defensive Techniques

If you are having issues with enemies using status-changing effects on you, you will need to put some time into Polearm defensive techniques. Not only will you learn to defend yourself against your enemies, but you will also pick up a few attacks that can knock down multiple enemies.

Polearm Support Abilities

Studying polearm support abilities will teach you to improve your accuracy and wound the action pools of other creatures.

Master Pikeman

If you have reached the point of being a master pikeman then you will receive bonuses to your accuracy, speed, and defenses. You will now easily outstrip the other classes in crowd control as well.

Pistoleer

Pistoleers are marksmen who have seen the benefits of being able to fight at close range, and have chosen to master that art. Pistoleers are skilled at attacking enemies from the closest range of any of the marksman-related professions, and have learned defensive techniques to keep them alive long enough to win the fight.

Starting Skills

A novice pistoleer learns a devastating special attack, gains a bonus to speed and accuracy when fighting with a pistol, and gains the certification to use a DX2 pistol.

Disciplines

Pistol Tactics

A pistoleer studying the discipline of pistol tactics will learn to dodge attacks, as well as several special attacks designed to attack opponents close up and leave them bleeding on the ground.

Pistol Marksmanship

This discipline deals with accurately firing a pistol, aiming a pistol for an especially precise shot, and firing a pistol accurately while moving.

Pistol Stances and Grips

By studying the discipline of stances and grips, a pistoleer learns to defend against a number of types of disabling attacks that would leave him especially vulnerable against close-up opponents. He also learns a number of unique special attacks with useful effects.

Pistol Special Abilities

This discipline teaches defensive techniques and improves speed with a pistol. Learning pistol special abilities will also teach you to fire more accurately from a standing position, and to use the pistol to survive a melee encounter.

Master Pistoleer

A master pistoleer will gain bonuses to all of the skills vital to a pistoleer, as well as a couple of advanced special attacks.

Ranger

Scouts are travelers, wanderers, and spies in the hostile wildernesses of many worlds. A ranger is a natural extension of the basic scout, focusing on the same skills and abilities for surviving in the wilderness, trapping, camping, and locating natural resources, but taking each of those skills to the point of perfection.

Starting Skills

A novice ranger gains improvements to most of the skills learned as a scout, including foraging, camping, knowledge of natural creatures, and the ability to harvest bone, meat, and hide from prey. Rangers also get a new type of camp, better than any others the scout can create.

Disciplines

Wayfaring

The wayfaring discipline encompasses the skills needed by rangers to move quickly in the wilderness and to remain undetected.

Frontiering

Frontiering is the discipline involving skills to keep a ranger alive and healthy in the wilds. While learning frontiering, a Ranger will improve in the ability to find food and drink in the wilds. A Ranger will also gain the ability to craft and set up increasingly complex camps, and even field bases with all the amenities.

Field Bioscience

While studying the field bioscience discipline, a ranger will improve his knowledge of the creatures of the wild, as well as the ability to harvest meat, bone, and hide from them. Field bioscience also bestows additional bonuses to combat ability against creatures.

Advanced Trapping

With this skill, a ranger will gain the ability to construct and use additional types of advanced traps. Advanced trapping also gives rangers the ability to come to the rescue of comrades in danger by drawing the attention of attackers away from them and onto themselves.

Master Ranger

Those who truly gain an intimate understanding of nature may become master rangers, gaining modest improvements to all of their ranger skills, as well as improved defensive ability against attackers.

Rifleman

A rifleman is a marksman who has taken the time to specialize in heavy, long-range weaponry. Riflemen become masters of attacking from long distances, sniping targets that don't even know what hit them. They are potentially the most dangerous of marksmen, with some severely damaging long range attacks, but they also have the greatest weakness of any marksman, being almost useless in a close fight.

Starting Skills

A novice rifleman gains the certification necessary to use a T21 rifle, a bonus to their speed and accuracy with a rifle, and a special attack designed to force an enemy out of hiding.

Disciplines

Sniping Accuracy

This discipline teaches a rifleman to fire with additional accuracy, improves aiming skill, and provides a few additional special attacks designed to quickly kill opponents from a long distance.

Concealment Tactics

Concealment tactics continuously improves a rifleman's skills in taking cover and protecting from long distance attacks. It also improves the speed with which riflemen can crawl along the ground toward (or away from) a target. A rifleman will also learn to move slowly while under cover, and how to conceal from an enemy the location from which he is being attacked.

Countersniping Techniques

This discipline teaches a rifleman a variety of defensive techniques that can be used against attackers, while at the same time teaching a number of special attacks designed to get an opposing sniper to reveal himself.

Rifle Special Abilities

While studying this discipline, a rifleman will increase in ability to defend against a close-range attacker, improve attack speed, and learn a couple of special attacks designed to distract opponents.

Master Rifleman

Those who learn all of the tricks and techniques associated with using a rifle can become a master rifleman. A master rifleman gains improvements to his speed, accuracy, ability to hit targets while moving, and a number of other vital skills, as well as a final special attack designed to leave opponents vulnerable.

Smuggler

Spicing, slicing, and dirty tricks are the life of the smuggler. They can slice, which is basically the ability to hack or electronically alter things like terminals, armor, and weapons to increase their effectiveness or open locked containers. They can also make spice, a general term for a number of quasi-legal or illegal substances that can be used to boost stats. Smugglers' underworld connections allow them to get things done in subtle ways that might not occur to more upstanding members of society.

Starting Skills

A novice smuggler learns the basic skills to create and experiment on spice, the ability to slice sealed containers to allow unauthorized people to access them, and a variety of recipes for simple spices.

Disciplines

Underworld

Underworld gives the smuggler the ability to understand any spoken language. It also gives him subtle abilities to manipulate his faction standings.

Slicing

The slicing discipline teaches a smuggler to slice weapons, armor, and terminals, and bestows the ability to create a few basic tools used in slicing.

Dirty Fighting

This discipline teaches a smuggler to play dead, falling to the ground and appearing to casual inspection as if he had been incapacitated. It also teaches a variety of tricky special attacks guaranteed to make the smuggler come out on top.

Spices

The spices discipline teaches the smuggler to make a wide variety of increasingly powerful spices, as well as increasing the ability to successfully create and experiment on spice.

Master Smuggler

Those who master the secrets of the smuggling trade may choose to become master smugglers. This doesn't carry any specific skill bonuses, but does carry with it a high reputation, allowing the smuggler to gain advantages through his faction standings much more easily than other characters.

Squad Leader

Squad leaders are characters who focus on the ability to lead groups of other players. A group led by a squad leader gains numerous bonuses and benefits over a non-led group. A group under a squad leader can attack with greater precision and efficiency, can defend themselves more surely, and if all else fails, can escape more quickly. With practice, a squad leader can vastly improve the performance of a team of players!

Starting Skills

A novice squad leader gains the ability to send system messages to the entire group. A system message shows up in the middle of the screen, not in the chat box, so everyone will notice it without having to look away from the action. This is a vital method of coordinating efforts by the team.

Disciplines

Mobility

This discipline allows a leader to coordinate the movement of his team, giving it bonuses when running or negotiating steep terrain. A leader skilled at mobility can have an entire squad moving as if they were all scouts, sprinting at full speed up steep cliffs.

Strategy

This discipline allows a squad leader to adjust their group's fire, either by improving their aim, or by automatically focusing every member's attacks on one target.

Leadership

The leadership discipline gives the squad leader the ability to remove debilitating conditions from the group, enhances their defense against close combatants, and lessens the effects of wounds by spreading them amongst the entire group.

Tactics

Tactics gives a squad leader the skills necessary to improve the overall defensive and offensive capabilities of his group, coordinate them to avoid ranged fire, and if all else fails, sacrifice himself to get them to safety.

Master Squad Leader

Upon mastering the skills of leadership, a squad leader may choose to become a master squad leader, gaining final bonuses to his troops' defense, speed, and ability to negotiate steep terrain.

Swordsman

The swordsman is a good balance between the fencer and the pikeman. Swordsmen are able to deal nearly as much damage as the fencer, yet at the same time they have a few more crowd control techniques than the fencer. As such, if you don't want to be too specific in terms of what advanced brawler profession you want to be, then it is a good idea to be a swordsman.

Starting Skills

The swordsman starts out by getting the two-hand hit 2, as well as certification for the power hammer. Swordsmen also receive +5 bonuses to melee defense and counterattack, in addition to +10 bonuses to two-handed melee accuracy, two-handed melee speed, and two-handed melee toughness.

Disciplines

Sword Offense

Studying sword offense will enable you to learn the two-hand area attack, which can lower the posture of multiple targets. In addition you may increase your toughness and defense against status changes.

Sword Techniques

Studying sword techniques will enable the swordsman to not only increase two-handed melee speed, but also to target the opponent's head, causing mind damage.

Sword Defense

Studying sword defense, the swordsman will learn several new ways of affecting damage on multiple enemies. It will also increase general defense, and defense against status changes.

Sword Finesse

Sword finesse is almost identical to the sword techniques discipline, except that while the abilities you learn with sword techniques will enable you to damage an opponent's mind pool, the abilities you learn with sword finesse will help you to wound an opponent's mind pool. You will also improve your two-handed melee accuracy by studying sword finesse.

Master Swordsman

Reaching master swordsman will bestow quite a few positive skill modifications, as well as the ability to do the dreaded two-hand hit 3.

Tailor

Amongst artisans are those who have learned to clothe others, to create basic necessities like backpacks and belts, and to craft luxuries like jewelry and elegant formal wear. These are the tailors. Your gun may keep you alive, your house may keep you warm, but if you want to look good, or want to impress your friends and enemies, only a tailor can serve.

Starting Skills

A starting tailor will not gain any immediate skill bonuses over what he had as an artisan, but will immediately receive a large number of new schematics, including schematics for jewelry and multi-color clothing.

Disciplines

Casual Wear

The casual wear discipline gives no new skills, but provides increasingly complex schematics for everyday clothing, the type that people wear on the street and on normal business.

Field Wear

The field wear discipline doesn't improve a tailor's abilities, but provides a large number of new schematics for practical clothing such as the type worn by explorers or military personnel.

Formal Wear

A tailor won't improve his skills by studying this discipline, but it provides increasingly complex schematics for the type of expensive, elegant clothing worn by those who are rich, and by those who want to impress those who are rich.

Tailoring

Tailoring is the skill set for the tailor. As a tailor advances through this discipline, he will continuously gain the ability to make clothing and jewelry more successfully, to improve upon standard designs, and to create clothing in more vibrant colors.

Master Tailor

Those tailors that master every type of clothing and jewelry, that maximize every skill, can become a master tailor. Master tailors receive a final boost to their tailoring skills, as well as the schematics to craft some of the most elaborate, sought-after items of clothing in the galaxy.

Teras Kasi Artist

After one has mastered the basics of unarmed combat, the Teras Kasi Artist is the next logical step, and will open up an entirely new world of combat techniques to the player. Those that are capable of mastering the Teras Kasi Artist are arguably some of the strongest and most feared melee fighters in all of SWG.

Starting Skills

The Teras Kasi novice will start out with the meditate and unarmed hit 2 abilities, as well as a +4 bonus to unarmed toughness and +10 bonuses to combat equilibrium, unarmed speed, and unarmed accuracy. Teras Kasi novices also receive a +15 bonus to meditate, and a +20 bonus to unarmed damage.

Disciplines

Meditative Techniques

By studying meditative techniques you will not only improve your ability to resist bleeding and heal your own wounds, but the bonuses to meditate will also increase your likeliness of hitting your target.

Balance Conditioning

Balance conditioning teaches the Teras Kasi Artist to withstand status modification attacks, and also to perform the unarmed knockdown.

Power Techniques

Increase your speed and damage, as well as learn several new attacks by studying power techniques. Some of the attacks can be extremely powerful, or even affect a group.

Precision Striking

Precision striking will not only improve the defense, accuracy, and toughness of the Teras Kasi Artist, but it will also teach them attacks that will specifically target an opponents health, mind, or action pools.

Teras Kasi Master

Becoming a Teras Kasi Master will enable you to gain some extremely impressive skill mods, many above a 20 point increase, as well as the unarmed hit 3.

Weaponsmith

Let's face it--the galaxy is not a peaceful place. While there are quiet corners, most places are dangerous. If it's not warring factions, it's marauding beasts. If it's not thieves, it's mercenaries. Even the simple tailors and chefs have simple weapons of some sort to defend themselves, and all these weapons come from a weaponsmith. Whether you want a simple staff, a reliable blaster, or a complex acid rifle, only a weaponsmith can fulfill your needs.

Starting Skills

A novice weaponsmith will gain small bonuses to their ability to create weapons, as well as their ability to experimentally improve the quality of their weapons. They will also gain a number of schematics that will allow them to create a variety of common weapons. They are also one of the higher-paid and more sought-after professions, as any combat-oriented profession will be willing to pay you quite a bit for quality parts such as vibro knuckles.

Disciplines

Melee Weapons Crafting

This discipline provides a weaponsmith with the schematics for a huge number of increasingly effective close combat weapons.

Firearms Crafting

The firearms crafting discipline gives a weaponsmith the schematics necessary to create rifles, carbines, and pistols of increasing complexity.

Munitions Crafting

Munitions crafting is another discipline concerned primarily with providing the weaponsmith with a full spectrum of schematics, this time for a variety of explosive devices.

Weapon Crafting Techniques

The weapon crafting techniques discipline is focused on the technical skills used by weaponsmiths. As a weaponsmith advances in this discipline, he will become more and more skilled in the basic assembly of weapons, as well as in the experimental techniques used to increase his weapons' deadly effectiveness.

Master Weaponsmith

The best weaponsmiths will eventually master all of the weapon design techniques described above. Those that do may then choose to become master weaponsmiths, gaining large bonuses to their crafting and experimentation skills, as well as the schematic for some of the deadliest melee, ranged, and explosive weapons known.

General Strategies

Getting Started

Take the Help that is Offered

I admit it; I am the person that always skips the tutorial to jump straight into the action. Doing that is a mistake with Galaxies. If you haven't played before, we highly, highly recommend that you go through the tutorial at least once. The interface and the controls are not what you expect them to be. They look like action game controls; they are not. They also look like RPG controls; they are not.

The controls and the interface are a unique blend of action and RPG styles that allow you to engage in the many complex activities involved in playing Star Wars Galaxies. If you rely on your past gaming experience to understand the controls, you will likely be overwhelmed, or at the very least, miss out on some subtle, hidden features. The tutorial is extremely well-done, and is worth the fifteen minutes it takes to go through. You will have enough to worry about when you step off the shuttle without having to try and figure out what button to push to fire your gun!

Your Guide to the Galaxy

Look at your tool bar, the small one in the lower-right corner of your screen. There is an icon shaped like an open hand. That is the Holocron, the game's built-in information system. It gives you instant information on almost any technical aspect of the game you need to know, like how to get to another planet, or how to put on your pants.

Learn Some Basic Skills

Whatever profession you chose to start with, consider immediately buying novice skill in at least a couple of other basic professions. Basic novice skills are cheap--they don't use up any experience points, and cost only 100 credits. Doing one set of shuttle missions (see the Missions and Factions section) will net you enough to get all the other professions twice over, so there is no reason not to add at least a couple.

If you are focusing on any non-combat profession, be sure to add one combat profession. Adding marksman, for instance, gives you access to better weapons and gives you offensive bonuses with the ones you have. For 100 credits, adding the class, even if you never take any more skills in it, greatly enhances your chances of survival early on.

Any combat class can benefit from novice medic skills to help heal up after a fight, and any class can benefit from novice scout skills to help when moving around the world. Taking novice entertainer will let you kill time and make money by dancing or playing for tips.

Later, as you become more experienced, you can always remove the skills you learned this way to make room for others, and you can do so without penalty.

Make Some Friends

Star Wars Galaxies was designed from the ground up to be a social, interactive game. While you can operate alone quite effectively, playing with a steady group of friends can bring great benefits.

Early on, while you are still learning the ropes, try to sign on with a group every now and then. If things go poorly, get a different group the next time. If you find that things go especially well with certain players or groups, keep track of them and try to play with them more often. A group of five people who are used to playing together is much, much more effective than a larger group of strangers.

Player associations, or guilds, are large, formal groups of friends. Guilds prosper through mutual support: the fighters protecting the craftsmen who equipped them, the merchants creating large shops for the craftsmen to share, the scouts looking for locations of good resources, and so forth. Player associations can greatly enhance the Star Wars Galaxies experience, so give it a try.

Do what you do Best

Now that you know the very basics, now that you have the beginning skills necessary to stay alive and make a profit, you need to get out there and get your feet wet. Do what you do best. If you are a marksman or a brawler, then go get into a fight. If you are an artisan, find some resources and make a few items. The first-tier skills for most basic professions don't take a long time to earn, but make a significant amount of difference when it comes to finding your way in the world.

Concentrate at first on getting two or three of your main skills up to the first tier. Run a few missions, maybe even a couple of shuttle missions so that you won't have to worry about money for a little while. By the time you finish this, you should not only be well on your way to success, you will have gained a much stronger understanding of the mechanics of Star Wars Galaxies, enough to enable you to push on toward more advanced skills and strategies.

Stop the Pain

When you fight, your HAM (Health, Action, and Mind) bars will fall, but these will heal up quickly. What is not so obvious is that, when you get hurt, you also take two other types of injury. These are only visible on your character sheet.

The first is physical wounds. These are cumulative penalties to your attributes that build up as you are injured. If you have a health score of 800 and take 55 health wounds, your health will effectively be down to 745, and cannot regenerate past that point. These wounds do not heal with time; they can only be removed by resting in a camp, resting in a medical center, or by the ministrations of a medic.

The second type of injury is battle fatigue. Battle fatigue accumulates steadily every time you are hit in combat. It is the stress that comes from being on the front lines, from being hurt. Battle fatigue affects all of your attributes, slowing you down and making you recover from injuries more slowly. It can only be removed by kicking back, putting your feet up, and relaxing. Watching a dancer or listening to a musician removes battle fatigue.

You will rarely have either battle fatigue or wounds at zero, and that is fine; the penalties are small. If you let them build up, though, they can be crippling and can take a long time to heal. Be aware of them; monitor them. When they start to build up (if you accumulate more than 40 or so wounds to any attribute, or more than 100 battle fatigue), start thinking about finding a way to remove them.

Macros and Aliases

There are two extremely handy tools in Star Wars Galaxies that allow you to simplify complex commands. These tools are the /alias command and the macro editor. Both work similarly, but each one has a few tricks that the other lacks.

Macros

A macro is a series of commands strung together and executed together. To create a macro, open up your Abilities & Commands menu, go to the Macros tab, and select 'New Macro.' Give your macro a name (with no spaces), and select an icon. Try to pick an icon that is distinctive, but different from the ones your own abilities use. In the space at the bottom, type your macro. A simple macro might be:

/stand; /bow; /say Hello

This macro would have you stand up, bow, and then say 'Hello.' Notice that the three commands are separated with a semicolon (;). This symbol is used to separate commands. The other important command to be aware of when creating macros is the pause. If you type '/pause' followed by a number, the macro will wait that many seconds before going on to the next thing. To put this into our example above:

/stand; /bow; /pause 5; /say Hello

When this macro is activated, you will stand up, bow, then wait five seconds and say 'Hello.' This is most useful when you are using a command that takes a while to complete. For example:

/forage; /pause 10; /forage; /pause 10; /forage; /pause 10; /forage

This would cause you to start to forage, which takes about ten seconds, then repeat the command a total of four times with ten-second pauses between them. When you are done with your macro, accept it, and you will have a brand-new icon under the macro tab that you can use like any other. You can now go into the controls page of the options screen and assign a hotkey to your macro, or you can drag the macro icon to a toolbar for easy access.

"Making an macro is easy and powerful, like this simple sampling example."

Some handy macro ideas:

To sample for a long time, resting between sets: /sample; /pause 1000; /stand; /sit; /pause 200; /stand; /sample; /pause 1000; /stand; /sit; /pause 200 (note that the pauses will be different depending on your attributes)

An alias is a text shortcut to a longer text statement. To make an alias, simply go into the chat window and type '/alias', followed by the shortcut, followed again by the full statement. As an example:

This creates an alias for the word 'hiya', so that when you type it as a command (/hiya), you get the full set of sentences behind it. This is useful for creating shortcuts for frequently-used phrases. As an example where this might come in handy, an armorsmith is frequently asked how much he charges for armor. He might have /bone, /chitin, and /tantel aliased, each being a shortcut to a statement listing the prices for each piece of that type of armor.

Aliases are quick and easy to use, and you can put commands and pauses into them, just like macros. In fact, any macro should work as an alias, too. What is the difference, then? First of all, you can't assign hotkeys to aliases, and you can't drag them to your toolbar. Secondly, aliases can be programmed outside of the game.

To program an alias offline, open the aliases.txt file with a text editor (WordPad works best), then start a new line. The line should look just like the command you would type into the chat box, but without the /alias command. Using our first example, you would put in:

hiya Hello everybody, how's life? Anything interesting going on?

Just like before, this would create an alias for 'hiya.'

Important Warning

Macros and aliases are great for saving keystrokes, preventing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, and relieving tedium, but rules are rules. It is in violation of the Star Wars Galaxies terms of service to set the game up to run itself and leave. You can create a three-hour alias to sample iron, but you are required to stay there while it runs. You can chat with friends, practice crafting, or count pixels. If you leave and let it run by itself, you could potentially be permanently banned from the game. What you do is up to you, but don't say we didn't warn you!

Quick Hints and Tips

CTRL-SHIFT-H turns the interface off and on.

CTRL-SHIFT-G turns on an interface window with some handy information. A smaller version of this window can be turned on through the options.

CTRL-SHIFT-S makes the camera spin around your character.

Star Wars Galaxies saves your character periodically, not constantly. If you crash, you may get a 'rollback' to a previous save and lose progress. You can force a save by logging out. Do this if you have just done something important (or expensive) that you don't want to risk losing.

You can make a hotkey for any command by creating a macro for it, then binding it to a key in the options/keymap menu under 'Custom.' You can create a button for it by dragging the macro to your quick bar.

You can drag any piece of equipment to your quick bar to access it through hotkeys.

You can resize your quick bar so it shows two rows at once.

Type /log to start keeping all your chat text as a .txt file in the Star Wars Galaxies directory. Type /log again to turn it off.

If you are a Brawler and a Dancer, dance with a weapon--it looks cool, attracting watchers!

You can tip someone from the bank with '/tip NAME XXX bank.'

When shopping the bazaar, only the first hundred or so items will be displayed. Hit the next button to see the rest.

Look at armor carefully. It lowers your secondary attributes when you wear it.

Entertainers get more experience when grouped. Never fight for customers--share them!

Contrary to popular opinion, when you quit through the menu, your character is not actually removed from the world for several minutes, during which time you are vulnerable to attack. To ensure you actually leave the world, quit by sitting (type '/sit'), then typing '/logout.' It will take thirty seconds.

You can reset your survey devices to longer ranges through the radial menu in your inventory. Longer ranges do have a higher mind cost.

Eating and drinking is not required, but if you do, your stats will be boosted for a short while.

/follow will cause you to automatically follow your target.

If you practice any skill that uses up HAM points (like entertainer skills or sampling) and have scout skills, you can practice in a camp. Your HAM will regenerate faster, and you will get survival experience.

You can't wink on Galaxies. Comma-parenthesis makes a good substitute for a wink. ,)

Missions and Factions

Missions

While you can get lots of experience by going out and finding things to kill, missions will allow you to gain not just experience, but credits, faction points, and access to interesting places as well.

Missions are simple tasks that can be gained via NPCs or mission terminals. They typically involve a simple task, and generally result in a reward upon completion. The simplest missions are delivery or fetch missions. They involve going to a place and getting something, and taking it somewhere else--that's it. No fighting, no fear, just a simple delivery.

More complicated are escort missions that have you traveling with an NPC, taking him to a certain location. The NPC can be killed on the way if you aren't careful, although they are generally capable fighters.

The most dangerous missions are destroy missions. They require that you go to a certain location and kill a certain creature, or destroy a certain building--usually guarded. They can be tough, but they pay the best.

There are a few other types of quests you may come across, some tailored for specific classes, like survey, recon, or crafting missions.

Terminal Missions

Mission terminals are located in most cities. To get a mission from a mission terminal, just walk up to it and use it. You will be presented with a list of five available missions, showing how much they pay and how far away they start. A pair of buttons at the top of the terminal interface let you choose between destroy and deliver missions. To take a closer look at an available mission, double-click it. Note that there is a difficulty number listed. To accept a mission, click the accept button and confirm.

When you accept a mission, a special orange waypoint is created for you automatically at your destination. If it is a multi-step mission, new waypoints will normally be made for you after you complete each leg.

Although only five missions are normally listed, if you hit the refresh button, you will be presented with a completely different list of five.

Mission items (NPCs, nests, etc) are not actually placed in the world until you accept the mission, and each mission on the list is generated specifically and solely for you, so don't worry about someone else grabbing the mission you want.

Delivery missions pay based on the distance you have to travel. There are normally two kinds listed--those paying less than 100 credits are close, usually in the same town. Those paying several hundred credits are in other, distant towns. It is rare, but not impossible, that a delivery mission will take you into the wilderness.

If you choose the wrong mission, or cannot complete it for some reason, you can open up your datapad, double-click on the mission's icon, and select Abort Mission to cancel it.

You can accept up to two missions simultaneously.

The difficulty of destroy missions is determined primarily by your equipment. If you think that everything that is listed is too tough, try unequipping your weapon and trying again.

Groups can take missions as a group for greater challenges.

"Be sure to note the difficulty number on the mission description."

There is one trick that bears special mention--the shuttle delivery mission. It is fast, and brings in a lot of money. To do the trick, go to a mission terminal and select a mission that pays around 600-700 credits. Double click it, and pay close attention to the destination that is listed. It should give a distance and a direction ('7048m to the NE' for example). Accept the mission. Hit refresh and find another mission that pays about the same amount. Open it up, and look at the destination. You want to find a mission with a destination that is within a few hundred meters of the destination for the other mission you accepted. If it isn't close, close it and try another mission, refreshing the terminal as needed, until you find one. You now have two missions to go to the same distant town. Visit the local NPCs to pick up the items (follow the automatic waypoints), and then head to the shuttle port. Use your map to figure out which town you need to go to, and then get a shuttle ticket there. The ticket will cost you 300 or so credits, but once you have finished the missions, you will have gotten paid 1300 or so, with a net profit of around 1000 credits for twenty minutes of work.

There are a few other types of mission terminals you may encounter--Rebel mission terminals, Imperial mission terminals, and bounty hunter mission terminals. Bounty hunter mission terminals can only be accessed by--you guessed it--bounty hunters. It is where they get their targets. Rebel and Imperial mission terminals give missions specifically for those two factions. They work the same way as general mission terminals, but the missions give faction points in addition to any monetary rewards. Be forewarned--the missions are sometimes harder than the missions you get from the general mission terminals.

NPC Missions

Another way to get missions is from NPCs: the common folk, merchants, officers, and so forth that wander around every world. Not every NPC has a mission to give, but many do, and they tend to be more interesting than the missions that you get from the terminals. To find these missions, just talk to the people that you meet in the streets. If they have a mission for you, they will tell you about it. You can ask them questions, then accept or decline the mission

Factions

Factions are groups of NPCs with which you can gain favor by doing special missions for them or by defeating their enemies. You can lose favor with a faction by doing jobs for their opponents or by killing faction members. If your faction points are extremely low with a particular faction, members of the other faction may attack you on sight. If they are extremely high, they may offer you special benefits, like equipment, training, or missions.

Most factions are just groups of wanderers, rogues, and scum on the various worlds, although a few have more significance. The most notable of these are the Empire and the Rebel Alliance.

Rebel/Imperial Factions

Skills and Abilities to Restore the Republic (better known as the Rebel Alliance) is in a full-blown war with the Empire. The two factions vie for control of various planets, try to influence politics, and actively recruit the citizens of the galaxy to their side. Not everyone chooses a side, but for those that do choose to take sides in the struggle, life can get very interesting.

Rebel and Imperial factions are so prominent that they are displayed on your character sheet right alongside your attributes. Just like with any faction, the higher your faction points, the better you will be treated by that side and vice-versa. Unlike most other factions, once you reach 200 points of positive faction, you can actually join that side (if you choose to do so) by talking to the recruiter that is generally standing near that faction's mission terminals.

Once you join, you automatically become what is known as a 'covert' member. Being covert means that you can attack the opposing faction's NPCs, take part in bigger missions, and gain perks. Other members of your faction will be able to see that you are a covert, or secret, member of the faction.

You can, at any time, go to the recruiter and have them change your status to 'overt', a process sometimes called 'declaring a faction.' When you do this, your faction alignment will be visible to anyone and everyone. You can do all of the things that a covert member can do, plus you can attack any overt member of the opposing faction--including other players--whenever you like. Of course, that means that overt members of the opposing faction can also attack you at any time, and without warning. It is a big step, and makes the entire galaxy into a PVP place with very few safe havens.

One other benefit of joining one of these factions is the ability to spend your faction points at a recruiter for promotion to a higher rank, weapons, armor, official Rebel Alliance home furnishings, or for any number of other useful things. You can also exchange faction points for experience, although this is very, very rarely worth the effort.

Combat

The Star Wars universe is not a peaceful one. With one major government overthrown by force, Imperial rule maintained by threat of force, and another attempt to overthrow the government only a few decades after the first, anarchy and chaos prevail more often then not. You will fight, or you will die.

When you are ready to go find a fight, you need to be aware of your environment to ensure that you can choose the fights you want, and avoid the ones that you cannot win. Watch your radar screen. You are represented by the white dot in the center. Yellow dots are creatures and NPCs that you can choose to fight. They usually won't attack you just because you are there, but you can attack them if you wish. Red dots are hostile NPCs or creatures that you can also choose to attack; if you don't, they will normally attack you first if you get too close.

First, select an enemy to fight. Target a creature by either clicking once on it, or by hitting the targeting key (tab, by default). This is not a hostile act, and doesn't start a fight. When you are facing a potential opponent that you have targeted, they will be surrounded by a box. At the top are their HAM (Health, Action, Mind) bars, showing whether they are injured, along with the creature's name. Your target's HAM bar will also appear in the upper-right corner of your screen for easy reference.

When you have found a likely target, you need to size it up. The first, most obvious thing to do is to look at the creature while it is targeted. To the right of its HAM bars you will see a small, colored star. The color of the star is an indication of how difficult the target would be for you to fight, based on your current skills and equipment.

"The colored star by a creature's HAM bars tells how hard of a fight it is."

Red targets will most likely kill you without a second thought. Avoid them, unless you are looking to visit the cloning facility.

Yellow targets are hard to fight. They are stronger than you, and you will have to pull out all the stops if you hope to beat them. You will get lots of experience if you win, but will also spend a lot of time healing your wounds.

White targets are ideal. You have to think a little to win, but if you fight smart, you should be able to take them.

Blue targets are weaker than you. You should have no trouble beating them, and can take out groups of them. The experience reward is small, but you can take on a number of them before having to rest. The fact that they are easy to kill also makes them good targets for scouts looking for hides or bone.

Green targets will likely fall on the first shot. You will receive little or no experience, and you are better off not wasting your time with them.

You can get a more detailed description of a creature by typing in '/con' (short for consider) and hitting enter.

Once you have found and chosen a target, you can actually begin to fight. Fighting in Star Wars Galaxies works differently than it does in most games. When you hit attack, you will continue to attack automatically until the target is dead, or until you are. You will attack over and over with your simple default attack. The default attack doesn't do much damage, but also doesn't have any cost associated with it.

Whenever you want, during combat, you can add in a special attack. These special attacks may do extra damage, blind a target, slow it down, or any number of other things, but they use up a small portion of your Health, Action, or Mind points.

If you do nothing but the basic attack over and over, you will never be able to kill anything harder than blue. If you do nothing but special attacks all the time, you will drain your HAM bars to the point that you will be very, very easy to kill. The strategy in the combat system comes from balancing the two, learning when to use a special attack, and knowing when to save the points and stick with the default attacks.

Solo Combat

When soloing you will need to adjust your strategies to accommodate the fact that there will likely not be anyone around who can help you, and instead you will need to attempt to act like an entire party on your own. As a result it is often best to cross professions, not only taking a combat-oriented profession, but also taking up any combination of the following: scout, entertainer, medic. While you will not need to specialize in any of these career paths, it will certainly help your longevity to simply have the novice basics down.

Melee

Soloing as a melee profession character will require quite a bit of fortitude and cunning. While ranged fighters can often get off a few shots before an enemy AI can get near them, you will not have this luxury.

Try to get in some disabling blows quickly, if you are able to do them. For example, when attacking them try to blind and stun your enemies, then move in with whatever attack you have that does the most damage. This will enable you to disable your enemy, in part, and allow you to get hit less often, thereby increasing your likelihood of survival.

In addition, it is best if you are able to exercise medic abilities during a fight, if you have any. Be conservative when using them. You don't want to stress your mind pool too hard so that you can still take mind damage, but don't forget the medic skills. They may very well save your life.

If you have managed to find a pair of vibro knuckles, then you will instead want to go for damage output. Stun an enemy if you can or have to, but once that is out of the way, go berserk and hit them where it counts. Remember, however, that when using vibro knuckles you will want to avoid special attacks, as they can seriously damage your own HAM pools.

Ranged

Soloing while using a ranged weapon relies almost as much on planning as it does on raw skill or damage. Ranged means just that--at a distance. While melee fighters can survive in a close-up fight, ranged fighters rarely have the skills necessary to survive for long periods of face-to-face combat. Add to that the fact that most ranged weapons suffer a severe penalty when firing at a target at point-blank range.

The easiest way to plan for a solo fight is to think of ranged combat as having two different stages: ranged (before the enemy gets close) and kiting (when they get close enough to be a danger). The vast majority of opponents are creatures without ranged attacks, but note that when fighting an NPC with a ranged ability, the kiting stage may never occur.

The ranged portion is the most vital, as it is when you should be doing the majority of the damage. The first shot, when you initiate combat, is the most important shot of the game. Early on in the marksman profession, you will gain the aim ability. When used, it will give a bonus to the next shot you fire, but it doesn't count as an attack itself. To start a combat, move until you are just barely inside of maximum range for your weapon. Go prone, and then use your aim ability, followed immediately by your most devastating attack. The combination of bonuses for attacking while prone and aiming mean that your attack has a very strong chance of hitting; furthermore, combat won't begin until you actually fire the first shot. Follow this up with another special attack, or just use the default attacks. With any luck, you will get off several shots before the creature figures out where you are, followed by several more before the creature can get close enough to counter-attack (assuming it doesn't have a ranged weapon). With practice, you can have a tough enemy more than halfway dead by the time it gets a chance to strike back.

When the enemy starts to draw close to your position, stand up immediately. Fighting an enemy close up while prone is a terrible mistake--you will be a sitting duck and likely won't even have the chance to fight back. Now comes the tough part of the fight, called kiting. Like flying a kite, you will be running along with your enemy trailing behind you. You will continue to attack, and can mix in combinations of default and special attacks. This is your most vulnerable time, as the penalties for running and shooting at a close target can be extreme. Just try to keep the enemy far enough away that they can't hit you regularly, and keep at it until they drop. Remember that with the first tier of the ranged support discipline you get a point-blank attack. Use it if the enemy gets too close, and be prepared to burst run if you need to escape.

Those fighting with a carbine should be able to use the above strategies with little change.

If you have a rifle, you will be able to start from a much greater distance, and do more damage to enemies before they get close. When they do get close, lose the rifle. Grab a pistol for the kiting portion.

If you have a pistol, you will find that most of your early fights will have a very short ranged segment, and a long kiting segment. Pistols are designed for this, and you are penalized less for close range and fighting while moving. More advanced pistol marksmen gain skills that can let them stand toe-to-toe with an enemy.

Support

If you are one of the more support-oriented professions (ie: anyone who isn't a Brawler or Marksman) then you really have no business soloing, unless it is in the effort of surveying for minerals or other raw materials. As a result, if you get into combat, the best, and only real choice for you, will be to run. Yes, occasionally you may find an enemy that you can kill, but those will likely be few and far between, and not offer you the experience that you would want.

Group Combat

When grouping it is often not as critical to be multi-professional as it is when soloing. Yes, if you are a Medic it still helps if you are an Entertainer and Scout as well, just for the sake of being able to dance away mind wounds and heal wounds in a camp that you can create, but it is not entirely necessary - if you group with the right people.

Melee

If you are playing as a melee-oriented profession in a group then it will be your job to make sure that you take all the damage that you can, in order to ensure that the rest of your group takes as little as possible. And while it sounds like this is painful, it is even more so in practice.

Additionally, while you are up there taking that very same beating, you will want to, if you are being attacked by a group, focus on things that will affect multiple enemies. This is known as crowd control. While the pikeman is best suited for this, the other melee-oriented professions are capable as well, as they level up. When you are not attempting to control the crowds, you will want to fight as if you were soloing, because when you're taking point it can sometimes feel very lonely if your medic isn't able to keep a constant stream of healing. Remember that blinding and stunning each enemy in turn will help you live longer. Don't focus on damaging all of them, the rest of your group is doing that while they shoot them; just blind and stun everyone and you will survive.

Ranged

In a group situation, ranged fighters generally have the job of dishing out damage. The Brawlers (with all the close-range defense skills) will be up front taking the hits and trying to stay alive long enough for the ranged folk to do enough damage to drop the targets.

For the most part, you will be fighting the same way you would if solo, save that you won't be doing too much kiting. Ideally, enemies should never get close enough to you to require kiting. Stay back, not at maximum range (because of the huge penalties), but far enough that the enemies won't pay too much attention to you and turn away from the brawlers. Shoot a lot, mixing in a special attack now and then--especially attacks that stun or blind enemies--but don't waste all your HAM points. If things suddenly go bad, say, if the brawler goes down, having enough points left over to pile on a couple of high-damage special attacks and end the fight quickly can be enough to save the day.

Finally, pay attention to the group leader. They will determine what targets to attack most of the time. Make sure that you are attacking that target. Failure to do so can get entire groups wiped out as you waste your attacks on weaker creatures or bring otherwise non-fighting creatures into the battle.

Support

It is when grouping that the support professions really shine. Those who are entertainers can relieve mind wounds in camps, those who are scouts can setup the ultra-necessary camps between battles, and those who are medics are of the utmost need and are often truly sought-after.

It is because of this that playing a support profession is a very serious thing, as often the entire fate of the group will hang on your shoulders. If a medic doesn't pay attention, or doesn't heal at the critical time, everyone in a group can sometimes end up dying very fast. As a result, the best advice that anyone can give you is to stay focused and watch your teammates. The moment you start to see their stats drop too far, heal them, and bring their stats back up.

Or, if you are one of the other support professions, look for opportunities for you to show off your specialty; your group will thank you for it.

PVP

PVP stands for player vs. player. It is what happens when two or more players, instead of slaughtering the local wildlife, decide to slaughter each other. Strategies are often different than those used against computer-based opponents, as human opponents may use strategies, act unpredictably, or go out of their way to counter your strategies, things that computer opponents rarely do.

There are a few different situations during which PVP combat can take place.

Duels. Two players can challenge each other to a duel, at which point they will be able to fight one another.

Rebel/Imperial overt agents. Overt Imperials can attack overt Rebels, and vice versa (see the Missions and Factions section for details). When you are killed while overt, you will come back covert.

Battlefields. Battlefields are special areas which, upon entering, you pick a side to fight on. After you pick a side, you will be in PVP mode as long as you are in the battlefield area. Don't worry--battlefields are very clearly marked.

Melee

The melee-based fighter in a PVP match will always be at a severe disadvantage, when compared to a ranged opponent. As a result, you will always need to play smarter than your opponent, or force them to do things that they would otherwise not want to do, in order to win. After all, if they can move just as fast as you, and can shoot while they move, then you will continually be chasing them until you die.

If you are fighting against a ranged opponent then the best thing that you can do for yourself is to, if possible, force your opponent to fight you indoors. Whether this means only challenging people when you are inside a building, or starting the fight outside and then running inside, that is up to you. Naturally, this suffers from the problem that your opponent may simply wait for you outside a building, or simply get more people to come in after you, so be careful when you try this tactic.

If you do have to fight your opponent in the open, however, you will most definitely want to first select them, then type '/follow' in order to ensure that you are always near them. This will keep you close, but not overly close. Close enough, however, that you should be able to use your longest-ranged attack to hit them, the Jab. It would be nice if Star Wars Galaxies introduced a '/stick' command that would keep you right next to someone, but that may have to wait for another patch...

Fighting in PVP against an opponent that is another Melee-based opponent is an entirely different matter, and will typically depend solely on who has the better armor (you will want chitin) and who has the best pair of vibro knuckles. Yes, tactics will come in handy, but they are a distant second to damage output and damage absorption, especially since you will be face-to-face with them the entire time, and as a result will not be able to maneuver much, without inviting your opponent to hit you.

If you do have some sort of a ranged weapon on you, such as a CDEF carbine, then pulling that out and trying to kite against another ranged opponent can often work quite well, but take care when doing such a thing, as they may be prepared for that.

Ranged

There are two types of PVP combat you will engage in against other players: battles against ranged fighters, and battles against melee fighters. Both are handled very differently.

When fighting a melee fighter, you have an advantage, but must still be careful. When it comes right down to it, he has to be close to hit you, and you have to be distant to hit him. You will want to keep away, and he will want to get close. A good brawler only needs to get close once; upon closing on you, they will hit you hard with one or two disabling shots, forcing you to the ground for a few seconds. By the time you can get up, you will be dead. If you stay away, you will win; if you get close, he will win.

For these reasons, pick your fights with care. Do not start a fight with a brawler inside a building; there isn't enough room to run. A good brawler will not chase you endlessly in a straight line, as he knows he is unlikely to catch up. If your opponent runs, he may be trying to lure you into a dead end or into a close series of alleys. Likewise, do not follow a brawler into a building during a fight. If you lose track of your opponent, it may be because he is trying to get you to come looking for him in a close environment. Walk around a corner he is hiding behind, he gets that one hit he needs, and you get to visit the cloning facility.

If your marksman also has some scout experience, and your opponent does not, you have a huge advantage. Run for the cliffs. Scouts can move much faster up cliffs than non-scouts. Run up a cliff, still attacking. You will gain a huge lead on your opponent. When he gets close, run back down. If he follows you, run back up. If he does not follow you, give him some blaster holes.

Fighting against another marksman is much more difficult. Unless one of you has a huge advantage in weaponry, armor, or skill, you will both be using the same tactics against each other.

Do what you can to stay at your ideal range while denying your opponent his. If you have a pistol and he has a rifle, you can fight closer, and hit better while moving. If you have a rifle and he has a carbine, you will have the advantage in a long-distance, stationary fight. Keep in mind, though, that he may carry several weapons. Close on a rifleman and he may pull out his own pistol.

Know your special attacks well. This is the biggest secret. Pay attention to your opponent's HAM bars. If one is significantly smaller than the others, then that is your opponent's weakness. If he has a small mind bar, or is using lots of attacks that are draining his mind, go for mind attacks; if he has a small health bar, go for health attacks. If they are all about equal, go for what you are best in (and remember that it is generally easiest to damage their health). Intersperse these attacks with attacks designed to stun and disable your opponent.

At the same time, be wary of draining your own HAM bars with special attacks. A good opponent will surely notice and use it against you.

Support

PVP is about combat; support professions are not. Unless you have a combat profession to fall back on, you will get eaten alive in most one-on-one PVP combat. In a group PVP situation, like a battlefield or an overt Rebel/Imperial fight on the other hand, you will be just as useful as in a non PVP group, perhaps even more so. Do the same thing you would there--heal the brawlers, stay alive, and add a bit of damage if you get the opportunity. Be warned, though, that human opponents are smarter than AI opponents, and the medics are likely to be the first targets for the enemy marksmen!

Crafting, Equipment, and the Economy

The people that designed Star Wars Galaxies have spent the last few years learning how to make an artificial economy work for numerous players, and Star Wars Galaxies is the product of that experience. One of the first things that you will notice when you play is that practically everything worth having is player-made, from pets to weapons to houses. There is a wide variety of advanced professions whose sole purpose is to master the art of crafting these things, and whose well-being in the game comes from selling them to other players.

Basic Crafting

The artisan basic profession, plus the advanced classes based on artisan focus on crafting, although several other professions (such as medic and scout) craft items as well. Although the tools, resources, and finished products are different depending on profession, the basic process involved in crafting is almost identical.

Crafting uses a tool, called a crafting tool, to make items. There are two types of crafting tools for any particular type of item: Generic crafting tools, and specific crafting tools, such as a clothing and armor crafting tool for tailors. The generic crafting tool is the starting equipment for an artisan, and allows you to make a number of simple items. The specific tool allows you to make complex items that the generic tool cannot. Additionally, if you are near a crafting station (normally located in towns) when you open a specific crafting tool, you may find a few other, more complex items available to be made.

When you choose to make an item, open the crafting tool, and choose the item you want to make from a list. You will be shown a picture of the item, a description of its purpose, and a list of the ingredients (resources) necessary to create it. When you hit assemble, you will be taken to a new screen that lets you choose exactly which resources you want to use. You will then attempt to create the item. A normal success creates the item, a good success creates an especially strong or powerful version of the item, and a critical failure just destroys all the resources you were using.

Once you have successfully created an item, you will be given the opportunity to name the item and, depending on the item type, customize certain aspects of the item. It will then, after a short wait, be deposited into your inventory.

Resources

As you can see, crafting uses resources to create items. Those resources are not always easy to come by. There are several basic ways of getting resources; you can forage them, sample them, harvest them by hand (scouts), or extract them with a harvester. You can also buy them from other players, but this is rarely the most efficient way, as it will be tough to make a profit from good produced on purchased resources.

Foraging Resources

Many resources, especially those used by medics and chefs, can only be found by professions with ability to forage. Scouts can forage for food, and medics for medicinal supplies. This is normally done through a simple command, and the results are fairly random. It is easy to be successful, but it can be hard to find a specific resource.

Harvesting Resources (Scout)

Scouts have the ability to go up to an animal that they have slain and harvest three specific resources from it: hide, bone, and meat. Meat is most useful for chefs, but hide and bone are used by lots of crafters, including the scout that found them. Each kill will allow a scout to harvest only a single resource, although if multiple Scouts are in a party, each Scout can scavenge a different resource from a particular kill (for example, scout A can harvest bone and scout B can harvest hide).

Surveying/Sampling Resources

Sampling resources is probably the most common way to find a particular resource, especially for a beginning crafter. To sample, you use a survey device. Survey devices come in several varieties, each for a specific class of resource, like minerals, chemicals, or flora. When you open a survey device, you will be given a list of all of the resources available on the entire planet, divided by type, on the right side of the screen. Select a resource you want, and hit 'Survey'.

The machine will take a moment to send out a signal to detect any of that resource nearby. A map will then appear on-screen showing the local concentration in percentages, and a waypoint will be activated to the highest percentage in range. These percentages represent your chances of finding a sample of the resource at that location. Go toward the waypoint, and, when you arrive, hit 'Survey' again. Continue this process, being careful of enemies if in the wild, until you reach the location with the highest percentage (you'll know you've reached it when you hit 'Survey' and the waypoint doesn't move). Once you are there, hit 'Sample', and you will kneel down and take a sample of the resource. If you are successful, you will receive a small amount of the resource, and will continue to sample automatically until you are out of Mind points. Sit, rest, and sample some more. Eventually you will end up with enough resources for your needs.

Unless you are desperate, or are seeking a very, very rare resource, don't bother sampling until you find a resource percentage of at least 70%. Anything less can take far too long.

If you rename a waypoint created by the survey device, that waypoint will be permanent (rename waypoints in the datapad).

Note that resources shift from time to time, and can run out. You may find different resources on Tattooine today than you did two weeks ago, or you may find that your favorite aluminum spot on Corellia has disappeared.

"After surveying, a map showing nearby concentrations will appear."

Extracting Resources with Harvesters

Harvesters are special facilities crafted by artisans or architects that can be placed out in the world to automatically harvest resources for you. This may sound like the easy way of doing things, but there are some drawbacks:

Harvesters require energy to run. That means that you either have to pay for energy, or, a better approach, buy a special type of harvester called a power generator to create power for your harvesters. One power generator will create enough energy to run two or three harvesters.

Harvesters (including power generators) require upkeep, which is money to keep them in good repair. If you don't pay upkeep on your harvesters, they stop harvesting and eventually break down and disappear.

Both upkeep and power have to be hand-carried to harvesters on a regular basis, and resources have to be claimed directly from the harvesters. This means lots of traveling on foot.

Harvesters are still the best way to get lots of resources, as long as you can afford the investment of time and credits necessary. For a full-time craftsman, this works great, but for an occasional crafter that doesn't want to have to go to his home planet every few days, it can be a bit much.

Advanced Crafting

While crafting is essentially simple, there are a lot of ways to make items that work and sell better.

Make items near crafting stations in towns. Not only will you have access to more complex schematics (item recipes), you can use your experimentation skills to make much more effective items.

Not all materials are created equal. If you have a schematic that calls for steel, and there are four types of steel on the planet, it does not mean that they will all create equal items. Pay attention to the descriptions and statistics of materials. Statistics like overall quality, malleability, or conductivity will help you to determine which materials to use in projects.

There is no need to neglect the low-quality materials, should you find a good concentration of them. Save them for when you want to focus on building your skills by making and destroying items.

If there are several types of a particular resource in an area, take a single sample of each, examine it in your inventory, and decide which to collect based on its qualities.

To make the very best equipment, try out different types of materials. If you are making guns that use copper, for instance, make one gun with each type of copper you can find, and see what gives the best results. Take notes on your results for future reference.

When you can afford it, get access to a factory (an automated crafter) to create components needed to make complex items, like cloth panels, batteries, or bone plates.

The Economy, or Buying and Selling

One of the features that makes Star Wars Galaxies special is its almost entirely player-driven economy. If you want a weapon, the chances are that it will have been built by a fellow player. If you find a great item while hunting, you won't be selling it to an NPC merchant, but to other players. While this seems simple, when the economy is in full swing, it is a complex, intricate process. While it is easy to sell a few items or buy a new pair of pants, mastering the economy and making a profit is a much more involved process.

Selling

The Junk Dealer

Most decent sized towns have a junk dealer. Junk dealers are NPC merchants that buy 'junk' from you. What qualifies as 'junk' is a number of cheap, useless items that you can sometimes find on creatures that you have killed. Most of the time the price they pay--often less than a dozen credits--isn't worth the effort of holding on to the items.

Selling at the Bazaar

The bazaar is the primary means of moving products for most non-artisans, for part-time crafters, and for artisans who don't want the headaches involved with setting up and maintaining their own shop.

Almost every town has at least one of the large red terminals that give access to the bazaar. Upon using one, you will be presented with a list on the left of collapsible categories, and a window in the center which will list items for sale. To sell items on the bazaar, click on the tab that says 'My Sales.' The window will change to a list of all the items you have for sale. To add an item, click the 'Sell an Item' button. A new window will pop up, showing your inventory. Pick an item, and then use the check boxes to sell it by either auction or instant sale. Instant lets people buy it outright for the price you set, and auction lets people bid on the item for a period of time you specify. Click 'Sell Item,' and your item is removed from your inventory, stored in the bazaar, and added to the list.

It sounds simple, and it is simple. There are, of course, a couple of drawbacks to using the bazaar.

You are limited to a price of 3000 credits, meaning that the bazaar is almost useless for selling extremely high-quality items, and equally useless if you are looking for such items.

You can only have twenty sales going on at one time. This may be a lot for some professions, but it is very limiting for an artisan.

You are competing directly against every other seller in the area, so if your basic camp is ten credits more expensive than someone else's, it won't sell.

Setting up Shop

If you are a serious artisan, you may eventually decide to set up shop. You can buy a building from an architect, and then place a vendor in it by studying the artisan profession's business discipline. A vendor is an NPC salesman that works much like the bazaar, but is completely private--only you, and those you designate, will be able to sell things through the vendor. Unlike the bazaar, vendors can charge high prices and keep a massive inventory, making them ideal for high-end goods, or ensuring that someone looking for something special will be able to find it. There are, of course, downsides to the shop as well.

Both the shop and the vendor need upkeep, money spent to maintain them in optimal condition. Also, while it is easy for someone to see what you have for sale at the bazaar terminal sitting in the middle of town, it is much, much more difficult to convince them to walk clear out of town to your shop.

For these reasons, an artisan who is serious about making money should consider the merchant profession as well as his crafting profession. Merchants get discounts to the upkeep of their vendors, and can advertise their shop in a number of ways; for one, they can hire NPCs to stand in town and yell its location to people.

Name Recognition and Reputation

Name recognition and reputation are the true secrets of success in the crowded marketplace. If you make pistols, and ten other people make pistols for the same price, why would someone buy yours instead of your competitor's?

First of all, name recognition. Consider picking a distinctive name, and using it on all of your products. If you are part of a guild, suggest that all the guild members share a brand name. Ten 'CDEF pistols' on the market might be ignored, but the one called a 'Killertech CDEF Pistol' will stand out. Once you have a name, stick with it.

"To develop a good reputation, be sure to include a brand name and description with all of your sales."

That is where reputation comes in. Eventually, if you do things right, your name will become recognized by people on your server. You want them to see 'Killertech' and know that they are getting the best product. How do you do this? There are several ways.

Quality. Re-read the section on advanced crafting, learn to create top-quality merchandise, and sell only the best that you make. People will see your brand and know they are getting quality items without having to check every statistic.

Marketing. Give things interesting names. Pay attention to the box at the bazaar that lets you describe the item. Either describe it, or draw attention to one or two outstanding features (like high damage, high durability, and so forth).

Accuracy. This goes along with marketing. Make things sound interesting, but don't make people guess. If it is a CDEF pistol, leave that in the name. Instead of a 'Killertech MkII', call it a 'Killertech MkII (CDEF)'. Don't make people guess what it is they are looking at, or they will skip past it to something they recognize.

Honesty. Don't trick people. Don't make a new player item and give it the name of a high level item. You may get away with it a couple of times, and make a few credits, but your name will circulate, and you will soon find that you can't sell anything. Likewise, don't sell damaged items. If the armor you are using is almost worn out, don't sell it to someone else at full price, knowing that it will break almost immediately after they get it.

Customization. If you make items with a lot of variations, like clothing, be willing to take custom jobs. You can make more from one guy who wants a whole outfit of baggy black clothes than you can from a whole day on the bazaar.

Free advertising. This is another use for the description box when selling items at the bazaar. Mention your name and that you do custom work, or mention the coordinates of your shop with a brief blurb about what you stock.

Buying

As with selling, there are several ways to purchase items. The bazaar is the easiest and the quickest, shops offer some of the best merchandise, and direct trade with another player works well when the opportunity arises.

The Bazaar

Almost every town has a bazaar terminal, large red machines that let you look over all of the items for sale across the entire galaxy. Go up to a bazaar terminal and activate it. Select the category of item you want to buy from the list on the left to view a list of items for sale in the main window. Note the line that says either 'Auction' or 'Instant.'

For instant items, double click an item in the main window to see a 3D view of the item and see its statistics. If you like what you see, click on 'Buy,' confirm, and the item will be deposited into the bazaar's hopper.

For auction items, as for instant ones, double click the item to open up an information window. Instead of 'Buy,' the button at the bottom will say 'Place Bid.' Upon clicking it, you will be able to enter your bid, as well as a higher bid to be automatically made on your behalf if your first one is passed. If you are outbid, or when you win the auction, you will be notified by in-game email, at which point you can go pick up your item.

Important! When you are finished shopping, click on the tab at the top of the bazaar interface that says 'Available Items.' This opens a list of all of the items in the bazaar terminal's hopper. Everything you have purchased will be here, not in your inventory. Select an item and click 'Retrieve' to move the item to your inventory.

There is one thing that you should notice about the bazaar. On the main screen, there are three check boxes, marked 'Entire Galaxy,' 'This Planet,' and 'This Region.' These determine which items you will be able to browse and buy. You are free to look at every item for sale in the entire planet, even in the entire galaxy from any bazaar terminal, and can even purchase them. Note, though, that you can only pick items up from the hopper in the same region where they are sold. If you are on Naboo, desperate for a pair of Pink Jedi Hotpants, and see some for sale in Coronet, you can buy them while on Naboo, but you will have to fly all the way to Coronet to pick them up.

The bazaar might seem like the optimal market for all your needs, but it has one huge drawback. Nobody can charge more than 3000 credits for anything on the bazaar. That means that the really good items will never be for sale there, and you must seek out the craftsman that makes them, or visit his shop.

Private Shops

Because of the price limits at the bazaar, most of the best items will not be found there. Artisans often open their own private shops, or band together to share a shop. Some of these shops carry a whole variety of goods; others might just specialize in one type of item, like weapons or clothing. To find these shops, try asking around. Check to see who made the similar items for sale at the bazaar, and ask them with /tell. Check the official Star Wars Galaxies message boards for the server you are on, as artisans often advertise there.

When you find a shop, it will have an interface almost identical to the bazaar, but with a much better selection of high end goods.

Caveat Emptor

Let the buyer beware. If you are buying from a shop, or especially from the bazaar, use caution! Don't buy anything other than the simplest items without taking a good, close look at them first. Many a person has been taken to the cleaners when a dishonest person has made one of the cheap pistols that everyone gets for free when they start, and named it a 'DX2 Pistol', charging three thousand credits for it. Double click the item in the bazaar, and look at the stats! A quick examination is enough to prevent you from being cheated.

Likewise, look at the condition rating, which should be two numbers separated by a slash (1000/1000). Some people have used a high quality item until it is about to break, and then sold it for full price on the bazaar. Make sure that the current condition is close to the full condition before you buy it. If one number is lower (55/1000), don't pay for it--it will just break when you use it.

Finally, if it is too good to be true, it probably is. There is no Jedi Potion. If you see one, it is likely a beer with a funny name, so put your credits away.

The Galaxy

Travel

Whether looking for adventure, sightseeing, looking for a rare metal, or meeting a friend, you may choose to travel through the galaxy and visit other planets. Currently, there are three ways of traveling: On foot, via shuttle port, or via star port.

Shuttle ports allow you to move quickly from one city to another, provided that both cities have either a shuttle port or a star port. To use a shuttle, go to a green ticket terminal and use it. You will be provided with a map of the planet, and can choose your destination by either clicking on it in the map, or by selecting it from a drop-down menu. When you have made your selection, and paid for your ticket, you can go wait for the shuttle next to the 3PO series droid that will be standing nearby. Using the droid (or the ticket) when the shuttle has landed will allow you to board it for a fast ride to your destination. Use the droid when the shuttle is not present to find out how long you have to wait until it arrives.

Star ports work the same as shuttle ports in every way, except that they also give you the option of traveling to another planet. This will appear on a second drop-down menu. It is important to note that not every star port can take you to every planet. Some advanced planets, for example, can only be reached via one or two specific other planets.

Traveling on foot is the most dangerous and the slowest way of getting between points, but it is also the only way that you will get to see the scenery or interact with the world. The most important thing to learn when traveling on foot is the waypoint system.

Waypoints

The waypoint system will let you quickly and easily find any place on the planet without having to worry about getting lost, provided you know how to use it. To use it to find a particular city or facility, open up your planetary map. On the right side is a list of all of the major facilities you might want to find. Some are nested into subcategories; just click once on the box by their name to open them up. When you click on a location, you will be shown a marker on the map screen showing where the facility is located on the planet. If you then right-click either the name or the marker and choose 'Create Waypoint,' a new, semi-permanent entry will be added in the last category on the right, 'Waypoints.' If you then right-click on the new waypoint and choose 'activate,' it will do three things. It will create an arrow on your radar/compass that points at it, it will create an arrow on the main screen that points at it unless you are already facing it, and it will create a bright pillar of light that only you can see over the actual location. It then becomes a simple matter of following the arrows to get to where you are going.

You can create a waypoint at any location by simply right-clicking the map screen and selecting 'Create Waypoint.'

You can use the command /waypoint XXXX XXXX (with no comma) in the chat window to create a waypoint to specific coordinates (i.e. '/waypoint 3550 -2354' creates a waypoint to those coordinates). This is the best way to find specific locations.

You can use '/waypoint' with no coordinates to create a waypoint exactly where you are standing, perhaps to ensure you can find your way back.

You can use the /find command to set an active waypoint on the closest facility or a particular person (i.e. '/find medical' puts a waypoint on the nearest medical center, and '/find Dar' puts a waypoint on the player named Dar, provided he is close enough.

Using either the map screen or the datapad, you can rename waypoints.

Autorun and Your Radar

When traveling long distances, you can use the autorun hotkey (defaults to NumLock) to automatically run. Hit it again or use a different movement key to cancel it. Autorun really saves you work, but it is extremely dangerous. It only takes a few seconds of inattention to run right into the middle of a pack of hostile beasties. Therefore, you must learn to use autorun in conjunction with your radar.

Your radar is the little circle that appears in the lower corner of your screen. You are the tiny white dot at the center. Yellow dots are creatures that you can fight, but are generally peaceful; you can normally run right through a pack of them without being attacked. Blue dots are other players, squares are structures, and dots of other colors generally represent members of a specific faction. The red dots are the ones you need to watch out for. They are aggressive creatures that will charge right in and attack you if you get too close. Some are weak, and you can handle them, but many are powerful creatures with little to fear.

Before traveling, I recommend that you first increase the range of your radar. Click the little minus sign so that the range on the radar says '128 m.' This lets you see things coming in time to change directions, but is still zoomed in close enough that you can see what you are doing. Keep an eye on the radar, then, as you move around. With practice, you will learn just how close you can get to the aggressive creatures (red dots) and remain safe. With even more practice, you will be able to sprint across a planet while crafting things in one window and chatting in another!

Starting Planets

Corellia

"The forests and plains of Corellia can be beautiful."

Corellia is a temperate planet, the prime world of the Corellian system, in the Corellian Sector of the galaxy. It boasts both large cities and great expanses of open wilderness. The world is famed for its rugged beauty, as well as its advanced industry, especially shipbuilding. The Corellian government had the foresight to place most of the world's heavy industry into orbit around the planet, allowing the planet to maintain both its amazing natural environments and its powerful industrial achievements separately.

Although ostensibly an Imperial planet, Corellia was also the birthplace of the Rebellion. Despite being officially part of the Empire, today Corellia remains functionally and politically neutral in the war, and representatives of both the Empire and the Rebel Alliance can be found in its cities.

Environment

Most of the wilderness of Corellia is grass-covered plains and rolling hills. Corellia is a wet planet, with two oceans, numerous lakes, and myriad rivers crisscrossing its grasslands. There is a smattering of forests scattered across Corellia, and the northern third is home to ranges of high, steep mountains.

Major Cities

Bela Vistal

Nestled in a small valley in the southeastern mountains of Corellia, Bela Vistal isn't an amazing town, but it is a nice stopover in a peaceful setting. It is well-suited to wilderness travelers, with both a cantina and a medical center in town to fix up the holes, and a fair selection of trainers.

The capital of Corellia, the Coronet is the jeweled crown of the planet. It is Corellia's largest city, a tall, busy metropolis, where you can find essentially anything you need. Coronet manages to present the image of a modern, towering metropolis without feeling like an overcrowded jungle, something rare in the galaxy. Typifying the rest of the planet, one can find both Imperial and Rebel presence in Coronet, though neither holds much sway.

Doaba Guerfel is a small town that grew up around a popular resort in the high mountains in the northern part of Corellia. It is a small town, close to nature, situated atop some majestic peaks just to the northeast of Agrilat Swamp. It manages to hold the line between small town and metropolis, providing plenty of services without overwhelming its natural setting.

Kor Vella started out as a religious sanctuary, but became a boomtown after the discovery of valuable resources atop the Kor Vella Plateau in the central part of Corellia. The town grew by leaps and bounds, even getting a full star port to shuttle the valuable resources to the shipyards in orbit. Don't visit Kor Vella if you are afraid of heights, though, as it is spread out over the top of numerous high plateaus connected with stone bridges.

Tyrena is located on the Golden Beaches in western Corellia, and is an extremely popular destination for the tourists who have come to bask on the shimmering sands. It is a large city, and a loud one, about what you would expect from a city whose primary business is catering to tourists. It boasts a variety of facilities to ensure that visitors don't have to go somewhere else to find what they need, including a bank and a full star port.

Vreni is the place to go in Corellia if you want to see what the planet is really all about. It is a city full of culture, but mercifully short on tourists. Vreni Island is in the southern ocean, and the town that bears the same name is really nothing more than a small village in the golden sands of the island, with one small cantina and a single hotel. Nonetheless, Vreni Island is bursting with local culture, with beautiful sandy paths, outdoor cafes, monuments, even a small amphitheatre with a stage. Vreni Island is not the place to go for action or excitement, but it is the best place on Corellia to just sit back and relax.

Facilities

Cantina, Shuttle Port, Junk Dealer

Basic Trainers

Entertainer

Things to do on Corellia

"Corellia boasts some of the largest urban centers in the galaxy."

Afarathu Cave (-2500, 3000)

Selonians are a native race on Corellia, and this cave is one of the strongest concentrations of them on the planet. At first glance, this appears as a smooth round hole in the side of a hill near the Kor Vella mesa. The hole leads into a deep and winding cave system, the home of the Afarathu savages that can be seen roaming the area.

Agrilat Crystal Swamp (600, 4500)

Agrilat Crystal Swamp is in the center of a massive mountain range in northern Corellia. It is a dangerous place, full of sheer cliffs and rock basins full of stagnant water. Strange crystalline formations, massive natural arches, and tall towers of stone dropping high waterfalls into the pools below await visitors to this unusual place. Its beauty is surpassed only by its dangers.

Renegade CorSec Base (5000, 1600)

This is a small outpost on an island in the eastern sea of Corellia, filled with renegade CorSec troopers and support personnel. Nobody is quite certain what they are up to in there, and you are risking your life if you try to find out!

Crashed Pod (-1750, -3300)

This is an escape pod from some unknown vessel that landed in the ocean near the beach, narrowly missing a huge rock formation.

Drall Cave (1000, 4200)

The Drall, another sentient race native to Corellia, make their homes in this deep cave in the middle of Agrilat Swamp. Be forewarned, the swamp is not an easy place to live, and the stocky Drall are quite capable of taking care of themselves when visitors come knocking.

Droid Graveyard (-1640, -10)

How they got there, nobody knows, but piles of old, broken droids line the plains in this canyon region. Be careful, though--not all of the droids have been deactivated, and not all of them are interested in protocol!

Nyax Fanatics Compound (1300, -300)

This fenced, defended compound is full of fanatics following Lord Nyax. A haven for his faithful, but a dangerous place indeed for those without the proper faction ties!

Statue (-1900, 4000)

A large, triangular obelisk resting on the side of the mountain, carved on each side with a human-looking face. Why is it here? What does it mean?

Secret Rebel Base (-6500, 6000)

Off in the furthest, most rugged corner of Corellia, the intrepid explorer may stumble across the secret rebel base. It is highly recommended that you stay away unless you belong there, but a loyal rebel might gain council with R2D2, C3P0, the famous pilot, Wedge Antilles, or Princess Leia herself.

Unfinished Wall (2550, 4750)

This is a single wall standing in middle of the hills outside of Doaba Guerfel. Part of an unfinished outpost, perhaps? An abandoned defense against the creatures of Agrilat Swamp?

Naboo

"Naboo is a green planet, with huge expanses of plains and hills."

Naboo, the setting for much of the two most recent Star Wars movies, is a green, wet world inhabited by the descendants of human colonists and by the native Gungans. It is the third planet in the Naboo system, in the Chommell sector of the galaxy, and played a significant role in the events that led up to the founding of the Empire. As such, the Empire holds Naboo in a firm grip, so much so that one of the Emperor's personal retreats is located there. Nonetheless, the Rebel Alliance has a presence on Naboo, though it is a secretive presence.

Environment

Naboo is unique in its internal formation, being honeycombed by myriad subterranean caverns, almost all of them submerged beneath the planet's massive oceans. The sheer amount of water on Naboo ensures that it is a wet planet, covered with lush, verdant vegetation, massive swamps, and green, grassy hills and huge green plains.

Major Cities

Deeja Peak

There isn't a lot to say about Deeja Peak, as there isn't a lot in Deeja Peak. Situated in the highest peaks of the Gallo mountain range, Deeja Peak is a small city, just large enough to rate a single shuttle port. Make no mistake, though, it is a beautiful city, full of typical Naboo architecture and culture, situated in an amazingly beautiful setting.

Facilities

Shuttle Port

Trainers

Marksman, Artisan, Entertainer, Theater, University

Kaadara

Standing at the convergence of great verdant plains and sunny beaches in northeastern Naboo, Kaadara is a popular enough tourist destination to rate its own star port. Whether you want to relax on the beaches, explore the nearby ruins, or visit the many civic and cultural facilities, Kaadara is a great place to visit.

Keren is the commercial center of Naboo, filled with merchants, industry, and money. Merchants and money being what they are, Keren is also the exception to the generally peaceful, lawful lifestyle of the rest of the planet. It is filled with ruffians, smugglers, and similar sorts of people that are rarely seen elsewhere on the planet.

Located high in the mountains in a secluded hollow amongst the tallest peaks, Lake Retreat feels more like a vacation home than it does a city, but the huge, pristine lake, the fantastic views in every direction, and the peaceful, relaxing nature of the place have made it popular with natives and off-worlders alike. It is even said that queens past and present have come here when they need to get away from the rest of the world for a while.

Facilities

Shuttle Port

Trainers

None

Moenia

Moenia City, surrounded by some of Naboo's thickest swamps and marshes, is a retreat and home for some of the galaxy's greatest thinkers, artists, and educators. Its universities are famed throughout the galaxy. The Empire looks at the town and its inhabitants as an eccentric, yet harmless group of thinkers. While this is true for the most part, the lack of attention from the Empire has allowed the Rebel Alliance to hold a stronger presence in Moenia City than is possible elsewhere on Naboo.

Naboo's political and cultural capital, Theed City is packed with monuments, parks, museums, and other tributes to Naboo culture. The centerpiece is the Theed Royal Palace, an ancient building that is a masterwork in a city known for its architecture. It is from Theed City that Queen Kylantha rules Naboo with the help of the Royal Advisory Council. Naboo is largely an Imperial city, but the Empire's presence in the city is minimal, due to the people's pacifistic tendancies.

The Narglatch in the area have made their home in this deep cave. They are strong, and not too fond of visitors.

Gungan Ruins (-270, 2780)

While it is true that all of Naboo is dotted with ruins, this particular set is larger than most, and is occupied by a large group of armed Gungans.

Veermok Cave (5700, -1500)

This large cave is the home of a large group of Naboo's simian Veermok. Some are docile; others are not, so use caution!

Emperor's Retreat (2400, 3900)

Situated high in the mountains, this villa has a massive veranda overlooking a glacial lake. Inside, beyond locked doors and Royal Imperial Guards, it is said that the Emperor himself conducts business with those who have proven themselves.

Gungan Monument (7550, 2250)

What this monument once was, the Gungans aren't telling. It is in ruins now, and inhabited by an outcast group of Gungans who aren't as friendly as the rest of their race.

Water Submerged Ruins (-3140, 2530)

Submerged in the water, this once impressive Gungan statue is now abandoned, and falling to ruin.

Gungan Sacred Place (-2000, -5400)

These ruins are an above-ground stronghold for the lake-dwelling Gungans. It is to this remote, hard-to-access site that they come in times of danger, and it is here that they made the treaty that still allows them to live peace with the Naboo (the human inhabitants of the planet). It is said that the Gungan leader, Boss Nass, can be found here.

Rori

Rori is different, for a starting planet. While many of the other starting planets are often relatively simplistic, Rori offers a good middle ground between most of the starting planets and the more difficult planets. As a result, if you are looking for a more challenging planet, then Rori is a great choice. Additionally, if you have built yourself up at one of the other starting planets, and are looking for something to do before you go for the more advanced planets, to finish leveling up your character, then Rori is also an ideal destination. Just remember, if possible, to take a scout, medic, and entertainer along, or dabble in those professions, for the towns are few and far between on Rori, and you never know when you'll need some time in the camp.

Environment

While there are grassland-like areas on Rori, much of Rori is lush and green, with large wetland areas. The flora here is also quite twisted and contorted, while the fauna is more difficult to manage and is larger than most of the starting planets. The landscape also offers a wide variety in terms of texture, so you should definitely have places to hide from enemies.

Major Cities

Restuss

Restuss is a moderately large city located in the northern regions of Rori. While much of the adventuring is to the south, this is definitely the 'in' place to stop when you're on Rori. The services are great and the crowds have stuff to offer. If you're in the area make sure to check it out; besides, there's a great cave nearby and a fort.

The architecture of Narmle is much like the architecture of Restuss, only on a slightly less populated and less grand scale. That said, Narmle is by no means a small town, it just tends not to be frequented by as many travelers. Anyway, if you are in need of services on the western side of the planet there aren't many other places to go, so high-tail it to Narmle and pray there are medics and entertainers somewhere around.

If you find yourself in the southeast end of Rori, are not an Imperial, and need some healing, then the Rebel Outpost is the place to go. While it may not have all the services of some of the more major towns, it does have most of what you need in order to get back on your feet again. Unfortunately, however, there is no Tavern, Cantina, or Hotel, so you will not be able to relieve battle fatigue.

Facilities

Cloning Facility, Star Port

Basic Trainers

Marksman

Things to do on Rori

- "Many of the buildings on Rori have the same elegance that is often seen on Naboo."

Neo-Cobral Base (5445, 5030)

If you have a small group together and you're looking for some quick and easy experience, then this is a good place. The base isn't all that big really, but it is deep. If you have a smuggler with you, then there's some treasure you can check out in the basement.

Ruins (6225, 1025)

While Rori is supposedly recently settled, there are some ruins from old structures here. Oddly enough, there are often lights from a small settlement as well...

Kobola Mining Cave (7385, 120)

If you have reached the advanced combat professions, or just have a good party of four or five guys that can handle some game, then this is a great place to go to get some combat experience, and take out quite a lot of humans that will give some decent experience. The caverns are also relatively long, so be prepared to be in there for a while. Also keep in mind, the enemies will help each other out if you initiate combat.

Imperial Outpost (6490, -4785)

The Imperial Outpost is a small and insignificant post with little of interest to look at. Not much reason to go here really unless you need a quick respite from the ravaging of the local fauna.

Ruined Temple (4160, -6650)

Several Gungans stand outside and around the temple located near a small Imperial outpost and the Rebel Military Outpost. The giant stone head on the ground does look pretty cool.

Borgle Bat Cave (860, -4890)

This opening leads to a rather large cave that is filled with Borgle Bats. While not the most difficult creatures on Rori, they can be somewhat difficult to manage if you are by yourself. That said, this cave can make an absolutely fabulous adventuring place if you are able to come here with a group of four to five other adventurers. Also keep in mind, the bats travel in packs of three.

Imperial Base (-5628, -5660)

If you don't belong to the Rebels, and you're looking for a place to kick back, get some missions, or maybe just join the Imperials, then this is your place. There's some AT STs here too that are worth seeing.

Gungan Camp (290, -30)

Not that there is much to do here, there are several friendly Gungans nearby that you can take out if you are inclined.

Gungan Shrine--of sorts (-1485, 1700)

Here you will find some of those funny stone heads, two buried and one built atop what appears to be a small ziggurat, surrounded by Gungan warriors. Don't worry though; they shouldn't attack you on sight.

Gungan Shrine (-5820, 5825)

Yet another Gungan shrine with Gungan warriors about it, only this one is a bit more established and is in less of a dilapidated state than the other shrines.

Gungan Village (-5735, 6280)

Yet another Gungan Village, much like the others. If you're looking for some quick kills, then this is definitely the place for that.

Underground Imperial Base (-1130, 4535)

From outside this compound doesn't look like much, though if you are also watching your map you will notice what looks like structures all over, just not visible with the naked eye. Upon entering the base, however, the inside reveals a much different story. This base is a no-frills, no recruitment, no mission terminal, get down to Imperial business place. There are all sorts of odd generators and other such things inside, and, in side, you will see a planning table upon which appears to be the plans for the Deathstar, or a holomap of the planet. Nonetheless, whatever the Imperials have going down here it is certainly big.

Sunken Head (975, 4500)

Of all the places where you can find the ruins of some sort of old Gungan temple, or some other decrepit structure, this one most certainly has the least interesting point of interest. Heck, there aren't even any Gungans around this one. Nonetheless, it is there if you want to see it and, ideally, it is on your way to another location, such as the Underground Imperial Base.

Talus

- "While there are creatures on Talus that aren't dinosaurs, there are quite a few of them."

Think of Talus as "The Land Before Time." Not only does the flora and fauna look the part, but the creatures do as well. Fortunately, most of the enemies that will attack you on sight are manageable, and those that are quite difficult won't attack you unless you attack them first. But be forewarned, the dinosaurs are quite difficult and plentiful.

Environment

Talus has thin, friendly-looking forests in abundance. There are also large plains, marshlands with quite a few rivers, and a long stretch of coast that is covered with sandy beaches. All in all Talus has a rather pleasant atmosphere and is worth a trip to see.

Major Cities

Dearic

Dearic is large, majestic, and beautiful. As you can see from looking at the facilities list, Dearic has quite a bit in the way of services, and you should be able to find most of what you need here. The imperial presence is also excruciatingly minimal, but there is no real Rebel presence worth mentioning. The only real problem with Dearic is the same problem with Talus, there's just little to draw people to this planet, so there aren't that many people in Dearic normally.

Nashal has many of the same traits as Dearic, only it tends to have fewer people and doesn't have as many services, such as a Bank. Otherwise Nashal presents a perfectly fine city, built around a river that cuts it in half.

- "The cities of Talus strongly reflect the cities of Corellia, with their gigantic, towering skyscrapers."

Unfortunately, Talus was launched in what I can only describe as an excruciatingly barren state and, as a result, is very sparse at this time. In fact, you can count the places of interest on your fingers, but that's OK, as that works out quite well for artisans, who are not as suited for combat or excitement.

Aa'kuan Caves (5930, 4655)

Most everything in the Aa'kuan Caves is yellow, and you will be able to mix it up quite a bit if you wish, at your leisure.

Burning Altar in Lake (2445, 2475)

There isn't much to do here; there aren't even any enemies around. But for some reason, atop a pillar, there's a censer full of some burning substance.

Wrecked X-Wing (4835, -4730)

OK, so it's a little bit of wreckage, what's the big deal, right? Well, the thing is there just aren't that many things on Talus for you to see or do, so you look long and hard for things to see. Besides, it does sort of look cool.

The Y Statue (-865, 1015)

For some reason there is a giant stone statue here, it could be a natural formation, but based on the way it looks it would be quite difficult for this to happen naturally. Likely it was built quite some time ago.

Broken Reactor of Some Kind (-1470, 1230)

Not sure what it powers, or if it even is a reactor at all, but it looks like it could be one, for there's quite a bit of electricity crackling around it.

Imperial Base (-2145, 2415)

This Imperial Base is one heck of a full-featured base. Not only do they have the standard fare of mission terminals and recruiters, but you will also find a Bank, Cloning Facility, Medical Center, and even a Star Port.

Burning Pile of Skulls (-5095, 2355)

Just when you thought you wouldn't find anything all that incredible on Talus, you can find this pile of skulls with some sort of magical-looking fire burning around it. This one may be worth it just to see, even though it is relatively small on the landscape.

Electric Ball (-5390, 4295)

There's a strange statue, of sorts, containing three pillars holding up a ball that is levitating slightly above the pillars and giving off massive amounts of electricity. It doesn't appear very functional, but it looks cool.

Face in the Rock (-3595, 5675)

It's big and it looks down on you. Not worth a trip really, as with many of the sight-seeing things on this tour, but it does look interesting and you should check it out if you are in the neighborhood.

Tatooine

- "This large open desert area is quite typical of Tattooine, along with giant cliffs and dropoffs in many areas."

Tatooine, as many have seen in the movies, is a relatively large desert planet with enemies such as Tusken Raiders and the dreaded Krayt Dragon. Here you'll find a wealth of culture and will be treated to numerous locations that look familiar, if you are at all familiar with the Star Wars universe.

Environment

While there are some rocky cliffs, the landscape of Tatooine is essentially one giant desert. As a result, the creatures and structures do more to resemble this than anything else, and cover from enemies will be minimal.

Major Cities

Wayfar

Wayfar is in the extreme southwestern portion of Tatooine, and is one of the least-populated cities in the area, as few people go too close to it. As a result, you will often have a hard time finding an entertainer or medic in the town when you need one. That said, however, Jabba's palace and a prominent Tusken Raider camp are both right outside of Wayfar, so there is quite a bit of action in the area, if little commerce or services.

Facilities

Cantina, Cloning Facility, Medical Center, Junk Vendor (2)

Basic Trainers

Scout, Medic, Artisan

Bestine

No doubt about it, there is an exceptionally strong Imperial presence in Bestine. In fact, if you have any desire to join the Imperials, then swinging by Bestine should be one of the first places you go. Heck, there's even an imperial station just outside the center of the crescent shape of the city. Beyond its imperial presence, however, Bestine is also quite a large city, so much so that it even has two Cantinas. Not only that, but the creatures of the desert rarely come too close to the borders of Bestine, as they do with the smaller cities such as Wayfar.

Even smaller than Wayfar, Anchorhead is a small city with relatively few buildings and services. Here you will find only a small shuttle port, cloning facility, and vendor. The local tavern doubles as a Cantina and Medical Center. Hope you like whisky as your painkiller instead of morphine. On the up side, Anchorhead has a strong Rebel presence, and you will easily be able to get connected here. Just be careful though, as Imperials raid this area often.

Facilities

Cloning Facility, Shuttle Port, Tavern, Junk Dealer (2)

Basic Trainers

None

Mos Espa

Mos Espa is a relatively large, neutral, full-service city in the northwestern end of Tatooine. Overall, if it is on Tatooine, and you need it, then you will be able to find it here. Just be careful when roaming the city; while creeps generally do keep out of it, the southern quarter tends to have a Squill infestation problem, and they can wipe out entire player groups if you're not careful.

Mos Entha is another one of the larger cities on Tatooine, and like Mos Espa, it is largely neutral with very little Imperial or Rebel presence to be felt. What it does have, however, is a relatively large criminal district where, once you are able to handle them, you can gain quite a bit of experience while staying in town. Just don't go to Mos Entha and assume that it will be populated, however, as you will often not find that many players in Mos Entha.

Mos Taike is little more than a small waystation for those travelers heading toward the Krayt graveyard, or just going to the northwest portion of Tatooine. It has a little bit of a criminal and Imperial presence, but not much else.

Facilities

Cloning Facility, Tavern

Basic Trainers

None

Mos Eisley

Mos Eisley is a den of criminals with a slight Imperial presence that is just enough to keep the place from delving into anarchy. That said, this is also often the most populated city on the planet and is packed full of services. Instead of having to look around for entertainers, like in other cities, you are likely to find hordes of them in Mos Eisley. You will also likely be able to find all the medics you could need and trainers for almost everything under the sun. Enjoy!

"As with many cities on Tattooine, Mos Eisley has quite the criminal district."

Tusken Raider Fort (-4000, 6250)

The Tusken Raider fort is most definitely not a place to go alone, as the entire area is swarming with Tusken Raiders. But, if you can get a relatively large group together with anywhere from 10 to 15 people in it, then it should definitely be a more manageable area, and something worth looking into. Tusken Raiders give quite a bit of experience and their equipment can be sold for a pretty penny if you get the chance. Besides, it is a cool place to check out, if for no other reason than to see it.

Imperial Oasis (-5270, 2810)

The Imperial Oasis is deceptively larger than it seems. On the outside it looks like a small camp on the bank of a pool of water. While this is certainly true, there is much more to the oasis once you enter the Imperial camp, as you will find that some of the buildings have large underground areas. There are also numerous crafting, imperial mission, and bounty hunter mission terminals here. If you have been away from a city for a long time, this Oasis is definitely a place you will have to check out, unless, of course, you've already aligned yourself with a different faction.

Gravestones (-6176, -5890)

The Gravestones aren't anything special really, just a couple gravestones next to a downed escape pod, hardly even worth a look.

Jawa Fortress (-6130, 1870)

The Jawa Fortress is surrounded with tons of those funny little cloaked people, droids, and commoners who are looking to purchase their droids. Unless you're looking for mass slaughter of your cute little friends, this is not a place to come for combat.

Hut (-4490, -2265)

Just a small resting place, this hut can act like a calm in the storm for the weary traveler.

Krayt Skeleton (-4640, -1910)

This Krayt Skeleton is guarded by quite a few nasty characters, and, unless you have a rather powerful group with you, you would do best to avoid it. Then again, if you do have a powerful group with you, this can be a great place for experience and for finding items.

Sarlacc Pit (-6160, -3365)

While you can't exactly do anything here, this is definitely a site worth seeing just for how odd it is. Don't worry about falling in though; the game will prevent you from doing that.

Jabba's Palace (-5890, -6225)

Entering Jabba's palace is a progressive task, and will require much effort and quests that involve little or no reward. Once you complete the initial quests to gain entry, however, other people will give you quests to gain entry into different rooms. That said, the rewards can be quite good, as you move up in the services of Jabba and meet his cohorts.

Crashed Escape Pod (-3930, -4425)

It's just what it sounds like, a crashed escape pod--not overly interesting, but there even so.

Maze (-3030, -5115)

There's a small maze out in the middle of the desert. There isn't anything in the center of it, there isn't anything at the end of it, but you can run through it nonetheless.

Moisture Farm (-2580, -5510)

There is a small homestead that is out in the middle of the desert. Not much you can do here, but there are quite a few bands of creatures around it that are worth killing.

Darklighter Camp (-700, -6725)

The Darklighter Camp is one of the bigger and more expansive camps. There is also an Imperial garrison nearby. If you have recently run into a band of reds then this is a good place to take them if you need to escape.

Rebel Base (-790, -4448)

Just a bit outside of Anchorhead you will find a small Rebel base, used for recruitment and mission dispersal. Additionally, there tends to be quite a few thugs here that you can pulverize for quick experience.

Desert Oasis (1930, -6030)

This oasis, unlike the one with the Imperial base, is typically quite deserted. Instead of finding people, you are far more likely to find various difficult creeps to kill. As a result, if you decide to come here, it is best to bring a relatively large party. Then again, if you must go alone, there are some weak creeps here as well, just be careful not to get too close to the nasty ones.

Wrecked Sand Crawler (3775, -5220)

Hey, it's a Jawa sand crawler, and it has been wasted. Somewhat cool if you hate the Jawas as much as most people.

Tranquil Oasis (6240, -380)

Unlike some of the other oases, this one is a little more on the calm side, and you will be far less likely to encounter resistance here. That said, when you do encounter resistance it will often be quite challenging.

Krayt Boneyard (6380, 4490)

There are quite a few strong enemies around here, but mostly there are lots and lots and lots of bones. Be very careful in this area.

The Dried Up Oasis (6660, 5450)

There is water here, just very very little, and almost all of the creatures around it are red. If you're looking for a place to gain experience, this is definitely a good choice, just be careful and bring a mob with you.

Cave Entrance (55, -85)

This cave is full of thugs and squills; make sure you bring a smuggler to crack open the mega-seal containers too.

Advanced Planets

Dantooine

- "When going to the Agro Outpost on Dantooine one must be careful, or he might end up the prey of one of the criminals in the area."

Much like Talus, though darker and more twisted, Dantooine is like the rated R version of the land before time. The giant beasts here, while not as large as some of the ones on Talus, definitely look more vicious and tough. Not only that, though, but they actually are tougher as each will take more hits to put down than one of the big nasties on Talus. There are also very few creatures on Dantooine that are manageable in the slightest without reaching the advanced professions, and as a result you will want to travel in packs. Additionally, almost all of them will attack you on sight, so be very careful. Most missions you get here will start around level 40 difficulty.

Environment

Dantooine is a planet that is covered with steppe and grasslands, and has quite an indigenous population of primitives that you will constantly have to watch out for. Fortunately, considering the difficulty of many of the creatures on Dantooine, the terrain is quite uneven and there are many gullies that you can hide in.

The Imperial Outpost is, as you might suspect, a small Imperial base that is, basically, in the middle of nowhere. That said, there is a small Rebel presence nearby, so those of you who are not exactly on the good-side of the Imperials will have a place of refuge. Unfortunately, instead of a Tavern like the Mining and Pirate outposts have, the Imperial Outpost has a Cantina and no Medical Center, so you will have to make a camp if you wish to tend wounds.

Facilities

Cantina, Cloning Facility, Star Port

Trainers

None

Mining Outpost

The Mining Outpost is a spartan operation, much like the Pirate Outpost. Fortunately, instead of a Cantina, it does have a Tavern though, and it appears to often be frequented by travelers, at least moreso than the other two outposts. Besides, this is likely the safest place to land as, if you are not aligned with the Imperial faction, or at the least neutral, you will most likely be attacked at the other two outposts.

Facilities

Cloning Facility, Star Port, Tavern

Trainers

None

Pirate / Agro Outpost

The Pirate Outpost is just that, an outpost of thieves and criminals. As such, and as you may expect, you will often encounter enemies that will attack you on sight inside of the outpost. Be careful whenever you need to make a stop over, but still make that stopover because the enemies at the outpost are far easier than the ones around it.

Facilities

Cloning Facility, Star Port, Tavern

Trainers

None

Things to do on Dantooine

Bridge (5264, -4530)

It doesn't really cross anything, there's no water and the small gully that it goes over is easily circumnavigated, yet for some reason there is a rickety old bridge between two minor hills that are really little more than bumps in the ground.

Tribal Village (5575, -700)

Be careful if you approach the village, as the inhabitants are sure to attack if they catch sight of you. That said, this can be an excellent place to gain experience, and is surrounded by carved facial stones.

Bridge Over Water (4135, -1705)

Much the same as the previous bridge, it looks as though Neanderthals built it. That said, this one actually goes over water, and therefore just might have some sort of purpose.

Friendly Tribal Village (-3860, -5730)

Unlike the other tribal village, the denizens of this one will not instantly attack you on sight. Instead you will be able to walk freely about their village, and start battle when you feel ready to.

Hut (-7070, -6155)

While the guy in the hut won't attack you on sight, it is pretty interesting to see a roaming Dark Side Savage.

Thug Hut (-5965, -4575)

There isn't much in the area around this hut, but that's OK. The reason you want to come here, especially if you are alone or are not one of the advanced Professions yet, is because most all of the enemies here are relatively easy to kill and still give a reasonable amount of experience. Not only that, but the thugs that spawn here spawn relatively soon after you kill one, and there is never more than one around at a time. As a result, this is a must-see location for those who are soloing on Dantooine.

Dathomir

"Dathomir's canyons are filled with dangers unlike those seen anywhere else in the galaxy."

Dathomir is a dark, treacherous, heavily-forested planet. Used as a place to exile prisoners since before the Empire, Dathomir has become home to nine clans of force-wielding women, some of whom have tamed the wild rancors that make Dathomir their home. Some follow the light side of the force, others do not. Dathomir is not a place to take a vacation, and certainly not a place for sightseeing. It is a place to die, unless you're fully prepared for the dangers it presents.

Environment

Dathomir is a blend of amazingly deep canyons, steep cliffs, and towering, misty-green forests. It is a wet planet, dotted with small lakes, though there are few actual rivers. You will find little evidence of civilization on Dathomir outside of its outposts, as this wild, inhospitable planet is anything but accommodating to the formation of any advanced society.

"Dathomir doesn't have any cities, just small defensive outposts."

Major Cities

There aren't really any cities on Dathomir, although there are two small outposts.

Science Outpost

This is a small outpost near the center of Dathomir, providing protection to those who wish to study the unique ecology of the planet. It has only the basic necessities, including a small, utilitarian star port, but that is about all you can ask for on a world like Dathomir.

Facilities

Cantina, Medical Center, Star Port

Trainers

None

Trade Outpost

The trade outpost, in the north of Dathomir, is nothing but a small, defensible outpost with a few basic amenities and a star port to ferry imports and exports down from the rest of the galaxy. There isn't much reason to go there, unless you need a drink, a clone, or a ride off planet.

Facilities

Cloning Facility, Star Port, Tavern

Trainers

None

Endor

"Endor is a dangerous blend of massive forests and massive wildlife."

Endor is the commonly used name for what is actually an inhabitable moon circling the gas giant more properly called 'Endor.' It is an undeveloped, out of the way planet, generally ignored except for a growing Imperial presence. It is home to two primitive native species, the Ewoks and the Duloks. The Ewoks are the more peaceful of the two species, but both engage in battles with the other. Endor is also home to the Marauders, a reptilian race not native to Endor. Despite its natural beauty, Endor is a wild, untamed place, filled with dangerous creatures and the creatures that eat them.

Environment

Endor is a lush, verdant world, comfortable to most of the galaxy's races. It is sometimes called the 'Forest Moon of Endor', owing to the fact that majority of the world's surface is covered by towering forests of massive conifers, split only by winding rivers and clear lakes.

"One of Endor's native races, the Ewoks, make their homes in easily defended trees."

Major Cities

Endor has no cities, large or small. It does, however, have a pair of small outposts.

Research Outpost

This is a small walled outpost, just large enough to allow scientists to get back and forth to the moon's surface, and to keep them alive long enough to do their jobs.

Facilities

Star Port, Cantina

Trainers

None

Smuggler Outpost

This is a tiny outpost, consisting of only a few exposed buildings and a smattering of tents. It has a temporary feel, as if it could easily be moved if the inhabitants get the feeling that the Empire is getting too nosy.

Facilities

Star Port, Cantina

Trainers

None

Lok

"You can't say it enough--Lok is not a pleasant place."

Lok is not a nice planet. It does not look nice, it does not smell nice, and it does not play nice. Lok has a violent but uninteresting history, first as a weapons testing ground for the Trade Federation, and later as a haven for pirates, smugglers, and anyone else who is so desperate to avoid attention that they willingly live in such an inhospitable clime.

Environment

Lok is a roasted blend of deserts and plains, with rivers full of sulfur running past bubbling pools of molten lava. The landscape is dotted with destroyed vehicles and settlements, a testament to its history. It is populated with any number of creatures that are tough enough to live in a climate that would kill most living things in short order.

"Nym's Stronghold isn't exactly crowded, but it is still a dangerous place."

Major Cities

Nym's Stronghold

To the point, there are no cities on Lok. Not enough people want to live there to support even a small city. The pirate Nym has a stronghold that is the closest thing, though it feels more like an abandoned village than a city. Dry weeds choke the streets, the buildings are empty, but a few basic services are present, as well as a small star port. Perhaps Nym knows that if you control a planet's travel, you control the planet.

Facilities

Bank, Cloning Facility, Medical Center, Star Port, Junk Dealer

Trainers

Medic

Imperial Base

There is a small Imperial base at -1850, -3000. It wouldn't even bear mentioning, save that it contains the only cloning facility outside of Nym's Stronghold, a useful thing for those who have gotten on Nym's bad side.

Facilities

Cloning Facility

Trainers

None

Yavin 4

"Yavin 4's wilderness areas boast massive plants and misty forests."

Yavin 4 is not, technically speaking, a planet, but is rather a moon orbiting around an uninhabitable gas giant, Yavin. Yavin 4 is a jungle world, lush and green, and about as dangerous as they come. Early in its history, Yavin 4 was the homeworld of the Massassi race. An invasion by the Sith, led by Exar Kun, placed the Massassi into slavery, and, later on, destroyed the entire race. Now only ruins guard Yavin 4's legacy, although one of the moon's extensive ruins recently served as the main base for the Rebel Alliance, at least until the Empire discovered its location and sent the Death Star to destroy it. What happened after that is well-known history.

Environment

Yavin 4 is a dense, tropical, humid jungle world, crossed with deep flowing rivers. On Yavin 4, the rule is size; everything is larger than life, from the plants to the native creatures. Although the native Massassi are gone, the world is dotted with temples they were forced to build during Exar Kun's reign.

"While too dangerous to support real cities, Yavin 4 does boast a pair of walled outposts."

Major Cities

Yavin 4 doesn't really have any permanent towns. To meet the needs of the beings who work on Yavin 4 to extract its valuable resources, though, two small outposts have been erected.

Labor Outpost

The labor outpost in the southern part of Yavin 4 is just a small, thickly walled compound whose primary purpose is to keep workers alive and safe from the gargantuan jungle long enough to make a profit. Simple services are available, as is a cantina to keep the workers happy. A star port is present to allow materials to be ferried off-planet, and fresh workers to be brought in.

Facilities

Cantina, Cloning Facility, Medical Center, Star Port

Trainers

Medic, Entertainer, Marksman, Brawler

Mining Outpost

Much like the Labor Outpost, the northern mining outpost is mainly a defensive encampment for the miners working on Yavin 4. Don't expect much beyond the bare necessities, though. While the mining outpost may have a star port, its purpose is industrial, and not the measure of size or popularity that it would be on a more civilized world.